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Corbett to remain closed for a day ahead of PM�s visit

Bageshwar villages cut off due to heavy snowfall

Sir George Everest�s Mussoorie house to get Rs. 23-cr makeover to attract tourists

Mussoorie decks up for festival of love

After emergency landing, chorus to replace �unfit� aircraft grows

Corbett to remain closed for a day ahead of PM�s visit

In light of Prime Minister Narendra Modi�s visit to Rudrapur on Thursday, the officials of the Corbett Tiger Reserve (CTR) have closed safari visit for one day in the popular Dhikala Zone.

The announcement was made through the park�s official site, but the reason for closure was not mentioned. "Due to indispensable reasons, the day visit in Dhikala zone on February 14 is cancelled. Due to indispensable reasons the night stay in Dhikala zone on February 13 is also cancelled," the notification on their website read.

However, an official of the CTR, on the condition of anonymity said that "The Prime Minister is likely to visit the CTR in the first half of the day. So, as a security measure the night stays on Wednesday and the day safari on Thursday has been cancelled."

The PM is scheduled to visit Rudrapur in Udham Singh Nagar district on Thursday for a rally.

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Bageshwar villages cut off due to heavy snowfall

Due to constant snowfall in the upper reaches of Himalayas, several villages in Bageshwar have been cut off from the outside world. According to sources, several villages in Bageshwar including Bacham, Sorag, Khati, Gogina, Badiakot have been totally cut off from the tehsil headquarters due to avalanche on Rikhadi-Bachham Road. The heavy snowfall has also interrupted telecommunication services, and supply of daily essentials, electricity and water.

Meanwhile, officials of Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) scheme said that all roads have been opened for traffic. Pankaj Kumar, executive engineer, PMGSY said that "our staff have been relentlessly removing debris from the road. However, the roads were blocked again and again due to continuous snowfall. As the weather has improved, we have opened the roads again."

Shikha Suyal, disaster management officer of Bageshwar, said, �The weather has improved and the roads are now open. Our teams are actively working to restore all services.

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Sir George Everest�s Mussoorie house to get Rs. 23-cr makeover to attract tourists

Sir George Everest�s house in Mussoorie which overlooks the pristine Himalayas and the Doon valley is set to get a Rs 23 crore makeover to draw tourists. The state government is planning to develop the home of the legendary surveyor after whom the world�s highest peak is named into a major tourist spot.

State minister for tourism Satpal Maharaj in a written reply to a question in Uttarakhand assembly on Tuesday said that a budget of Rs 23.6 crore has been sanctioned for the project whose foundation will be laid on Friday. Maharaj said that the project would be carried out with the assistance of the Asian Development Bank (ADB).

Mussoorie MLA Ganesh Joshi said that the proposal includes building motorable roads to approach the mansion which is currently in a dilapidated state as well as developing other infrastructure near the house. "It is difficult to reach the house via car at present because the road leading to it is mostly loose gravel. Therefore, the major focus of the project is to build a motorable road."

The sprawling mansion, also known as 'Park Estate', was built in 1832. At present, the house is under the jurisdiction of the Archaeological Survey of India and is not open to public. Sir George Everest, the Surveyor General of India from 1830-1843, used it both as his observatory and laboratory. It is from this house that George Everest presided over most of the findings of the Great Trigonometric Survey of India (which was responsible for demarcating the boundaries of British India) and also measured the height of the world�s tallest peaks.

In August 2015, the then tourism minister Dinesh Dhanai had announced that a museum would be built in the property and a hot air balloon facility would also start. The house was whitewashed but the rest of the project did not see the light of day.

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Mussoorie decks up for festival of love

As Valentine�s Day approaches, the queen of hills, Mussoorie, is all decked up for doting couples. While the hill station has always been a cherished honeymoon destination for newly-weds, a peek into its history reveals interesting tales of love and romance in the yesteryears as well. The picturesque hill town was in fact a favorite place for romancing couples ever since the British era.

One such spot, popular among couples, is the 'hawaghar' also known as the 'Scandal Point', located on the Camel's Back Road. Historian Gopal Bardwaj says that in the 1930s and 1940s, it was the favorite meeting place of young lovers and hence it was named as 'Scandal Point'. Several residents of Mussoorie fondly remember their rendezvous with their sweethearts at his place.

"Today couples are connected to each other through the social media platforms but earlier there were no telephones and internet connections, and hence lovers used to meet at such discreet places. Scandal Point was one place where I used to meet my childhood love" said a senior resident. Just about 500m before the 'Scandal Point' is a sharp bend on the Camel's back road which also has a unique tale attached to it.

According to Bhardwaj, this bend had a ditch over which there was a wooden bridge. This point was referred to as the 'Lovers Leap' during the pre-independence era, as a young British couple had lost their lives here. According to him, a young girl fell into the ditch while she was riding a horse and had succumbed to her injuries.

Shattered by her death, the girl's lover committed suicide jumping into the same ditch. Since then, the spot became popular as Lovers� Leap. Historically, the town has had many secluded spots which became a favorite of lovers as they had less chance of being spotted there.

Interestingly, in a letter written on February 14, 1843 Maugh Monk, a German resident of Mussoorie wrote to his sister wishing her Valentine�s day and cherishing his love and romance with his newlywed wife Bess.

With Valentine's Day around the corner, the town, like every year, expects a rush of tourists. "The air of Mussoorie is such that is seems to draw romantics. A lot of romancing couples from nearby places like Dehradun, Saharanpur, Rishikesh and other towns make day visits to Mussoorie on Valentine�s Day. We are geared up to welcome them," says Rajat Aggarwal, president of traders association of Mussoorie.

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After emergency landing, chorus to replace 'unfit' aircraft grows

After the Pantnagar-Pithoragarh flight operated by Air heritage, made an emergency landing just five minutes after take-off on Saturday, locals and activists have demanded that the ATR-9 aircraft is not airworthy and it should be replaced with a better one.

They alleged that the aviation company is risking the lives of passengers as there have been frequent incidents of flights developing snags since the service under UDAN scheme commenced on January17. The authorities concerned have, however, claimed that such aircraft are being used across the country and is safe.

Meanwhile, after the Director General of Civil Aviation sent an aerospace engineer to Pantnagar airport for a detailed investigation on Monday, another senior technician reached the airport to identify the technical glitches in the aircraft. Regarding the emergency landing made by flight 4H 103 on Saturday, officials had claimed that if was due to a technical snag, while passengers on-board the aircraft said the door of the plane opened mid-air.

A retired senior police officer from Rudrapur, RP Sharma said, "Days before the incident, I had made plans to go to Pithoragarh with my friend, who insisted that we take this flight. But my past experiences suggested that ATR-9 is a risky aircraft to fly and so I preferred to go by road. I would suggest the authorities to replace this aircraft with ATR-42 at the earliest. ATR-9 aircraft is an outdated aircraft, used mostly as chartered plane and that too, if it is in good condition."

Tilak Raj, Former congress minister said that "the state government should immediately stop operating this plane. This aircraft has been facing technical glitches ever since the services began. It seems that the state government is risking the lives of people just to score brownie points by claiming that remote areas in the state have now go t air connectivity."

Pantnagar airport director SK Singh said, "Human lives are paramount for us. We are open to improve the services, even if that includes replacing the aircraft with a better and new one. However, it is up to the Director General of Civil Aviation technician and engineers to take a final call."

"Two experts are currently working on the aircraft with the team members of the aviation company. I hope the issues would be sorted out soon. Till then, the aircraft will not be allowed to fly," Singh added. Singh claimed that ATR-9 is not an outdated aircraft and it is being used extensively by regional aviation companies such as Air Odisha and Zoom air.

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