Latest news with #Dehradun-based
Hans India
13 hours ago
- Hans India
NH-74 scam case: ED seizes Rs 24.70 lakh during searches in Uttarakhand, UP
Dehradun: The Enforcement Directorate seized Rs 24.70 lakh and incriminating documents during simultaneous searches at seven locations in Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh in a case linked to a Dehradun-based provincial civil service (PCS) officer in the NH-74 scam case, an official said on Friday. D.P. Singh, a senior PCS officer currently working as Executive Director, Doiwala Sugar Mill in Dehradun, faced the searches on Thursday, said an official statement. The ED said D.P. Singh, the then Special Land Acquisition Officer (SLAO), Uttarakhand, while working in the capacity of Competent Authority of Land Acquisition (CALA), entered into conspiracy with Revenue Officer/Officials, Land Consolidation Officer/Officials, farmers/land owners, middlemen and others for misappropriation of the government funds by manipulating the use of land by way of passing backdated orders. This resulted in payment of higher compensation to landowners at non-agriculture rates, as opposed to the legal and expected compensation, said the ED. To achieve his ulterior motives, he resorted to fabrication/forgery by making back-dated entries in revenue records/documents, which were projected as genuine at the time of distributing compensation to landowners against land acquired for the widening of NH-74 and NH-125. This resulted in a loss of Rs 162.5 crore (approx.) to the government treasury, said the federal probe agency. The ED in this case had already attached movable and immovable properties amounting to Rs 43 crore (approx.) from various accused persons. While the investigation is in progress against these officials and landowners, seven Prosecution Complaints have already been filed before the Special Court (PMLA), Dehradun. Earlier last year, the ED attached immovable properties worth Rs 7.89 crore in the form of land situated at Vallah village in Amritsar district, along with movable properties worth Rs 2.40 crore in connection with a case linked to the scam. The ED had initiated the investigation under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) based on an FIR filed by the police. During the investigation, it was revealed that five brothers -- Ajmer Singh, Sukhdev Singh, Gurvail Singh, Sukhwant Singh and Satnam Singh -- managed to get backdated forged orders and subsequently got them entered in the revenue records on a later date in connivance with the revenue officials and middlemen. Based on this, they fraudulently received excess compensation to the tune of Rs 15.73 crore for their land, which was being acquired for the widening of NH-74 at a non-agricultural rate. The ED investigation revealed that this ill-got money was either utilised for purchasing immovable properties in their names or was transferred to their other bank accounts or bank accounts of their relatives.
Time of India
4 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Wildlife Institute of India moves to stall pay of those who skipped yoga event, later backs off
DEHRADUN: The Wildlife Institute of India (WII) Monday issued an internal communication warning staff of possible salary deductions for failing to attend the International Yoga Day event on June 21 without prior notice - but later retracted the directive. The notice, citing "poor attendance" despite repeated reminders, said employees and researchers who skipped the Yoga Day event without approved leave would need to submit a written explanation to their reporting managers or risk having their June salaries withheld. However, within hours, the notice was withdrawn. TOI accessed the email, titled "Explanation for Absence on International Yoga Day Celebrations 2025," which read: "Please note that while WII ensures the timely disbursement of monthly salaries/emoluments to over 600 employees (including researchers), about 75 individuals participated in this important national event. In view of the above, all those who were absent on the International Day of Yoga without prior intimation are required to submit a written explanation for their absence. .. The finance officer is requested to withhold the release of the June 2025 salary until the attendance record, tour details, or valid written explanation is received and verified." WII Director Virendra Tiwari later told TOI, "No such action is being planned. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Memperdagangkan CFD Emas dengan salah satu spread terendah? IC Markets Mendaftar Undo It appears that some administrative staff, perhaps out of over-enthusiasm, went overboard with the directive." According to researchers at the institute, many staff members skipped the event, knowing that International Day of Yoga was not a mandatory observance under the ministry of environment, Forest & Climate Change (MoEF&CC). WII, however, had marked the event - with activities like yoga sessions, plantation drives, cleanliness campaigns, and refreshments - as compulsory. The Dehradun-based WII, an autonomous body under MoEF&CC, has been organising Yoga Day events annually.
Time of India
4 days ago
- Time of India
No relief for Doon builder from HC in land fraud case
Dehradun: Uttarakhand high court on Monday declined to grant immediate relief to Dehradun-based builder and industrialist Sudhir Kumar Windlass and his three associates, who are facing fraud charges. A single bench of Justice Pankaj Purohit scheduled the next hearing on Windlass's third bail application for the first week of July. Windlass's counsel said the 72-year-old was undergoing treatment for health complications at Himalayan Hospital in Dehradun, as per court directions. "We told the court that the chargesheet is under cloud before the Supreme Court, and since the trial is unlikely to conclude soon, he cannot be incarcerated indefinitely. There is no justification for keeping him in judicial custody without a conviction," said Sanjeev Agarwal, Windlass's lawyer. He was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in Dec 2023. Windlass is accused of defrauding individuals by persuading them to sell land, which he then allegedly transferred to another businessman. After complaints from victims, the state govt launched a probe, later handing the case over to CBI. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Memperdagangkan CFD Emas dengan salah satu spread terendah? IC Markets Mendaftar The CBI investigation implicated Windlass and three associates in the alleged scam. A special CBI court refused to grant any relief to Windlass and his bail plea was rejected 12 months ago, after which he and others sought bail from the high court. The defence argued that the "actual perpetrators," now in prison, "tarnished Windlass's reputation by fabricating documents, despite his standing as a respected businessman in Dehradun." They maintained that Windlass had no role in the fraud and that others misused his name to illegally execute a land sale deed.
United News of India
5 days ago
- Science
- United News of India
WII scientists track hyena's 85-km trek, flag corridor concerns
New Delhi, June 23 (UNI) In what wildlife biologists are calling a rare and significant observation, the Dehradun-based Wildlife Institute of India (WII) has documented a striped hyena's 85-km dispersal from Rajaji Tiger Reserve to Corbett Tiger Reserve — the longest such journey recorded for the species in India through camera traps. The hyena (Hyaena hyaena) was first photo-captured in Rajaji National Park in March 2018, followed by a sighting in the adjoining Shyampur forest division in August, and finally in Corbett Tiger Reserve (Kalagarh) in January 2019, according to a study published in the latest issue of journal Current Science. While typical hyena movements range between 0.7 to 9.5 km, this individual covered an estimated 85 km, one of the farthest recorded for the species in India. This unusual dispersal behaviour highlights the importance of wildlife corridors that connect fragmented forest landscapes. 'This is the first documented dispersal event of a striped hyena through a camera-trap network in India,' said Dr. Ayan Sadhu, lead author of the study titled, 'Dispersal record of a striped hyena from a camera trap survey'. 'It underlines the functional connectivity between Rajaji and Corbett, and the importance of intact forest corridors in supporting such movements.' The researchers used systematic, grid-based camera trapping conducted as part of the All India Tiger Estimation 2018, covering Rajaji, Corbett, and adjoining forest divisions. The Terai Arc Landscape, where the study was conducted, is home to multiple large carnivores including tigers, leopards, and bears, and is increasingly threatened by infrastructure development, agriculture, and urban expansion, said the wildlife biologists. 'Despite facing risks such as road mortality, disease spillover from domestic animals, and human conflict, carnivores like the striped hyena are still able to disperse—provided suitable habitat corridors remain intact,' said Dr. Qamar Qureshi, senior scientist at WII and co-author of the study. The other authors included Kainat Latafat and Yadvendradev V Jhala, both from the WII. Wildlife corridors between Rajaji and Corbett are already under pressure due to linear infrastructure, including highways and railways, which fragment habitats and pose barriers to animal movement. The study highlights the utility of large-scale camera trap surveys in capturing behavioural and ecological insights for species that are otherwise difficult to study, at the same time calling for protecting and restoring wildlife corridors to facilitate movement and maintain gene flow between isolated populations. "Safeguarding such corridors is critical not only for hyenas but for the long-term survival of the entire large carnivore community in the region," it said. The study was conducted with support from the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) under the Union Environment Ministry and the Uttarakhand Forest Department. UNI AJ SSP
Indian Express
5 days ago
- Indian Express
Salary warning to those who skipped Yoga Day event creates stir at Wildlife Institute, later withdrawn
An internal email from the Wildlife Institute of India (WII) has run into controversy after it warned that the salaries of employees who were absent for the International Yoga Day event on Saturday at its offices could be withheld until a valid written explanation is submitted and verified. The email was sent on Monday morning by the Registrar of the Dehradun-based central government institute. After it created a stir, another email was sent in the afternoon saying that the previous one had been withdrawn. According to Monday morning's email, the overall attendance for the Yoga Day event was poor despite repeated notices issued by the WII and communications from the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change. 'Please note that while WII ensures the timely disbursement of monthly salaries/emoluments to over 600 employees (including researchers), about 75 individuals participated in this important national event,' it said. The mail further said that all those who were absent on June 21 — Yoga Day — without prior intimation are required to submit a written explanation for their absence. WII employees, permanent and contractual, were asked to submit an explanation to their sectional head or the Deputy Registrar. The email also asked the finance officer to withhold the release of salaries for the month of June until the attendance record, tour details, or a valid written explanation is received and verified, the email said. Then at 1.54 pm on Monday, another email said the previous one stands withdrawn. The institution's Registrar, J A Johnson, said the morning email was sent to ensure 'professional conduct' among employees, and was not a ministry directive. 'As the administration, we expect punctuality and discipline, which is why the email was sent. We had not planned any action. Yoga Day was an institutional event, and I wanted employees to take part,' he said. Before Saturday's event, on the same email thread, the Registrar had asked the employees to wear white clothes and carry individual yoga mats to celebrate the day. Staff at the institute said that participation on Yoga Day has always been voluntary at the institute. The Registrar also said it has not been made compulsory. Aiswarya Raj is a correspondent with The Indian Express who covers South Haryana. An alumna of Asian College of Journalism and the University of Kerala, she started her career at The Indian Express as a sub-editor in the Delhi city team. In her current position, she reports from Gurgaon and covers the neighbouring districts. She likes to tell stories of people and hopes to find moorings in narrative journalism. ... Read More
