Tag: Dhanbad

Ranchi Metro a must but where’s the will

Source: telegraphindia.com

The proposed monorail/metro project for Ranchi, which chief minister Raghubar Das had announced in November 2015, has been struck off from the priority list of the government ahead of the upcoming Assembly elections.

Ministers and members of the BJP tasked with the job to highlight the achievements of the government ahead of the crucial polls no longer broach the sensitive topic of “Metro Rail”.

The central government, which was supposed to provide funds for the project, has also rejected the state’s proposal on technical grounds but residents feel that monorail or metro railway is the need of the hour for better public transport in the state capital.

“In the next three decades Ranchi is bound to expand because of the growing population but the government has not taken any step for planned development of the capital. The main city is spread over a few square kilometres but people are gradually settling down in the fringes of the city. In such a situation, metro rail would have served future purposes. Now, the Jharkhand High Court and the Assembly are being shifted outside the city limits and people will require a rapid transport system,” said city-based contractor Arun Kumar Mishra.

Ranchi entrepreneur Chandra Bhushan Jha, however, feels metro is not feasible for a city like Ranchi that is growing vertically.

“Patna will soon have metro railway but we don’t even have proper city bus services. A bus fleet was purchased under JNNURM to improve urban transportation but most of these buses are in bad shape because of lack of maintenance. Metro is indeed required since Ranchi has the worst traffic system but the big question is whether we have enough space within the city to execute the project,” said Jha.

Sidharth Tiwary, a business consultant, however, feels otherwise.

“Three cities of Jharkhand — Ranchi, Jamshedpur and Dhanbad — have been categorised as tier-II cities. Trade, commerce and industry in Ranchi is expanding. Inter-connectivity of districts should be priority for the government now. Urban development remained pivotal for the government and a number of good works were done by Das but I am surprised why the government did not take up the metro railway project,” said Tiwary.

State urban development minister C.P. Singh, who also holds the additional charge of transport, said the project had been aborted on technical grounds.

“We had submitted a proposal to the Centre but it was rejected on technical grounds. In future I don’t think neither monorail nor metro railway would be taken up for Ranchi. We don’t have sufficient land in the city to start the project. People want facilities but they won’t part with land. Even in executing small projects we face problems and protests. To commission a project the government is forced to use force and then attract criticism. Without public cooperation it is impossible to start a mega project like this,” minister Singh said.

He added that the urban development department had identified government land at Dubalia to set up the Transport Nagar but people had started protesting against the project.

“Like at Bajara, the department had identified government land to execute a housing project for the poor, but we have been facing protests. In fact, the government drags its foot from any project fearing people’s protest,” said Singh.

Ranchi Metro a must but where’s the will

Source: telegraphindia.com

The proposed monorail/metro project for Ranchi, which chief minister Raghubar Das had announced in November 2015, has been struck off from the priority list of the government ahead of the upcoming Assembly elections.

Ministers and members of the BJP tasked with the job to highlight the achievements of the government ahead of the crucial polls no longer broach the sensitive topic of “Metro Rail”.

The central government, which was supposed to provide funds for the project, has also rejected the state’s proposal on technical grounds but residents feel that monorail or metro railway is the need of the hour for better public transport in the state capital.

“In the next three decades Ranchi is bound to expand because of the growing population but the government has not taken any step for planned development of the capital. The main city is spread over a few square kilometres but people are gradually settling down in the fringes of the city. In such a situation, metro rail would have served future purposes. Now, the Jharkhand High Court and the Assembly are being shifted outside the city limits and people will require a rapid transport system,” said city-based contractor Arun Kumar Mishra.

Ranchi entrepreneur Chandra Bhushan Jha, however, feels metro is not feasible for a city like Ranchi that is growing vertically.

“Patna will soon have metro railway but we don’t even have proper city bus services. A bus fleet was purchased under JNNURM to improve urban transportation but most of these buses are in bad shape because of lack of maintenance. Metro is indeed required since Ranchi has the worst traffic system but the big question is whether we have enough space within the city to execute the project,” said Jha.

Sidharth Tiwary, a business consultant, however, feels otherwise.

“Three cities of Jharkhand — Ranchi, Jamshedpur and Dhanbad — have been categorised as tier-II cities. Trade, commerce and industry in Ranchi is expanding. Inter-connectivity of districts should be priority for the government now. Urban development remained pivotal for the government and a number of good works were done by Das but I am surprised why the government did not take up the metro railway project,” said Tiwary.

State urban development minister C.P. Singh, who also holds the additional charge of transport, said the project had been aborted on technical grounds.

“We had submitted a proposal to the Centre but it was rejected on technical grounds. In future I don’t think neither monorail nor metro railway would be taken up for Ranchi. We don’t have sufficient land in the city to start the project. People want facilities but they won’t part with land. Even in executing small projects we face problems and protests. To commission a project the government is forced to use force and then attract criticism. Without public cooperation it is impossible to start a mega project like this,” minister Singh said.

He added that the urban development department had identified government land at Dubalia to set up the Transport Nagar but people had started protesting against the project.

“Like at Bajara, the department had identified government land to execute a housing project for the poor, but we have been facing protests. In fact, the government drags its foot from any project fearing people’s protest,” said Singh.

Former Lok Sabha MP and Founder of Jharkhand Movement AK Roy Passes Away in Dhanbad

Source: news18.com

Dhanbad: Former Lok Sabha MP and founder of Marxist Coordination Committee (MCC), A K Roy passed away at a hospital here on Sunday.

Roy, a bachelor, was 90, party sources said. The veteran Left leader and chief patron of CITU Jharkhand state committee was admitted to the Central Hospital here on July 8 following age-related problems and he died of multi-organ failure, doctors said.

He was one of the founders of the Jharkhand movement.

The three-time MP from Dhanbad was also founder of Jharkhand’s regional party Marxist Coordination Committee (MCC).

Roy won the Dhanbad Lok Sabha seat in 1977, 1980 and 1989, besides representing Sindri seat in Bihar Assembly in 1967, 1969 and 1972.

Along with Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) supremo Shibu Soren and former MP late Binod Bihari Mahto, Roy began

Jharkhand movement demanding a separate state from Bihar in 1971. Jharkhand became a separate state on November 15, 2000.

Roy was born in Sapura village, now in Bangladesh. His father Shivendra Chandra Roy was an advocate. He completed MSc in Chemistry from Calcutta University in 1959 and worked for two years in a private firm. Later, he joined PDIL Sindri In 1961.

He actively participated in Bihar Band agitation on August 9, 1966 and was arrested and sent to Jail. As he opposed the then government, the Projects and Development India Limited (PDIL) management dismissed him from job.

Roy entered trade union and started agitation in Sindri Fertilizer Corporation of India (FCI) and against private colliery owners. In 1967 he contested on CPI (M) ticket from Sindri Assembly seat of Bihar and won.

But he resigned from CPI(M) and formed his Marxist Coordination Committee.

Roy was called a ‘political saint’ by his associates and followers as his bank account always showed ‘zero balance’ till he breathed his last.

Roy lived in the house of a party worker at Pathaldih area, 17 km away from Dhanbad, for the past one decade.

Earlier he lived in his party office at Temple Road at Purana Bazaar here. “He was the first MP in the country who opposed increase in perks and pension proposals in 1989 for MPs, though his proposal was defeated,” Anand Mahto, a former MCC MLA, said.

Toyota Expands Its Dealership Network With A New Showroom In Jharkhand

Source: motoroids.com

Yesterday, Toyota extended its dealership network in India with the inauguration of its 364th touchpoint in Jharkhand. The newly unveiled Dhanbad Toyota is a well-equipped, world-class facility which will cater to 3S (Sales, Service and Spares) requirements of customers and is also the 5th touchpoint in the state of Jharkhand. The touch-point was Inaugurated by Mr N Raja, Deputy Managing Director – Toyota Kirloskar Motor along with Mr Rituraj Sinha, Dealer Principal – Dhanbad Toyota. With its philosophy of ‘Customer First’, Toyota is geared up to ensure the most enjoyable and hassle-free car buying experience for every customer associating with the brand.

This new dealership spreads across 46000 sqft and will cater to the customers from the eastern parts of Jharkhand. Dhanbad Toyota is equipped with many modern amenities to strengthen Toyota’s existing network in the region and help in achieving the highest level of customer satisfaction with an entire team of well-trained professionals and service teams. In addition to showcasing the entire range of Toyota products in India, the new dealership is fully stocked to facilitate distinctive offers to customers in car servicing like Express Maintenance, Body & Paint Repair and other Value-Added Services. These services are undertaken by professionals from the best technical institutes supported by Toyota and constantly upscaled through unique skill training of global standards.

Speaking at the inauguration, Mr Rituraj Sinha, Dealer Principal – Dhanbad Toyota said, “It is our absolute privilege to get associated with Toyota, one of the global leaders in car manufacturing. We are grateful to Toyota Kirloskar Motor for their confidence and thereby making us a part of their India journey. We at Dhanbad Toyota, are here to affirm Toyota’s commitment to its customers through their experience with best-in-class purchasing and service offerings at our full-fledged facility. As ambassadors of Toyota, we look forward to representing the premium brand by demonstrating Toyota’s renowned global standard products and service quality to the people in the region, ensuring the highest level of satisfaction of the valuable Toyota Customers.”

Commenting on the opening of the new dealership, Mr. N Raja – Deputy Managing Director of Toyota Kirloskar Motor, said, “The inauguration of Dhanbad Toyota marks yet another milestone in our relentless commitment to establish fruitful and everlasting relationships with our patrons as we continuously strive to reach closer to our customers and deliver world-class Toyota products and services lineage through their delightful experience with us. We are glad to have intensified our reach in the state of Jharkhand, which is a very important aspect of our growth strategy, thus aligning with our approach to offer advanced amenities and quality services through strategically located network set-ups in different parts of the country. We have been successful in establishing a positive synergy with all our dealer partners as a result of which, Toyota has set a benchmark in the sales & service offering to the customers. As our dealer partner, Dhanbad Toyota has a good understanding of this prominent market and is aligned with Toyota’s deep-rooted focus on high-quality service with ‘Customer First’ approach. We are confident that this state-of-the-art showroom in Dhanbad will further strength our presence in this region by catering to the increasing demand for Toyota cars and enable customers to enjoy the experience of car ownership with Toyota brand”.

Jharkhand district hospitals to get special wards for seniors

Source: hindustantimes.com

Health secretary Nitin Madan Kulkarni has directed 22 districts to set up 10-bed geriatric ward in sadar hospitals under National Programme for Health Care of Elderly (NPHCE) as soon as possible for providing acute care to older persons.

So far, geriatric ward functions only at Patliputra Medical College Hospital (PMCH) in Dhanbad and second in at Bokaro sadar hospital which was inaugurated earlier this month.

“If all goes as per the plan of health department, geriatric ward would begin functioning at sadar hospitals of all 22 districts within 4 months before the assembly election,” said Dr Lalit Ranjan Pathak, state’s nodal officer of national programme.

Health secretary has also directed to set up separate OPDs for geriatric ward, patients and separate registration counter, along with railing ramp, would be made available. In a 10-bed geriatric ward, eight beds would be for general and two beds would be equipped with advance equipment of life support system for critical patients.

At present, due to the lack of geriatric ward at sadar hospitals, elderly patients across state have to rub the shoulders with general patients in getting registration and checking up at OPDs. However, elderly patients would now get separate registration counter and OPD in geriatric wards.

CARDIAC CARE UNIT IN RANCHI, BOKARO
Health department has also started a process of setting up cardiac care unit (CCU) in Ranchi and Bokaro.

Central government has selected three districts of Jharkhand- Ranchi, Dhanbad and Bokaro- for setting up the CCU under national programme for prevention of cancer, diabetes and stroke (NPCDCS).

Health department has already opened the unit in Patliputra medical college hospital. A senior official of the state headquarter, Dr Pradeep Kumar, on Friday visited PMCH to assess how the Cardiac care Unit (CCU) functions there so that the Ranchi and Bokaro Units could be run on the same pattern.

“Crisis of cardiologist is the main hurdle in setting up the CCU in Ranchi and Bokaro. Since PMCH had facility of specialist teachers (doctors), CCU could be set up easily. However, for time being health department has decided to run at Ranchi and Bokaro with general physicians latest by October,” said Dr Pathak, nodal officer, NPCDCS Jharkhand.

Transporters’ strike hits coal supply in Dhanbad’s power plant

Source: hindustantimes.com

Transporters’ strike hit coal supply at Maithon Power Limited (MPL) in Dhanbad, leading to the crisis of electricity production in the thermal power unit, Ramesh Jha, MPL chief executive officer.

Jha said situation in power plant worsened as supply of coal and transporting of ash from the MPL plant completely interrupted due to strike by workers. The tool down strike entered 6th day today.

“Regular maintenance activities of critical equipments have been stopped due to the workers’ strike leading to the closure of the plant”, said Jha. Coal transporters have stopped supplying coal since Saturday demanding revision in fare.

The district administration on Wednesday held meeting at Maithon for resolving the strike but failed to address the grievances of the protesters. Rural superintendent of police Aman Kumar, who chaired the meeting, said the meeting would be held again tomorrow. “Negotiation is continued. I have called management and land losers leaders in Dhanbad tomorrow for talk and I hope crisis would be resolved”, he said.

Already 170 land losers have been “laying a siege” to the power plant, demanding compensation promised by the power company. The protestors under the banner of MPL Vishthapit Sthaniya Samiti along with the Kamgar Union – the recognised union of the power plant – have been holding the stir in support of 18 points demand. The workers too started tool down strike inside the plant for enhancement of salary payment from June 10. However Nirsa MLA Arup Chatterjee, who represented the land losers and workers, held the management of the MPL responsible for failure of talk. “Agitating people have 18 points demand. At the meeting, we proposed that for time being implement only three points – job to land losers, increase salary of workers and ensure gratuity of employees but MPL officers were not agreed on any of these demands”, he said.

Nirsa MLA, however, denied charges that agitators stopped entry and exit of officials in the plant and workers were hampering coal feeding in hopper inside plant.

“No one stops officials. Rather, agitating land losers are also helping them so that power generation runs smoothly”, he said.

MPL is joint venture of Tata Power and DVC which generates 1050 MW power per day and caters requirement of four states Bengal, Delhi Punjab and Kerala. MPL official said plant needs 15000 ton coal per day for generation 1050 MW power.