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• Rain and hailstorm damage crops in Andhra
• First sky bus in Goa is set for trial run by May-end
• Manali villagers protest film shooting    

Rain and hailstorm damage crops in Andhra (Go To Top)

         Hyderabad: Heavy rain and hailstorm lashed Andhra Pradesh, severely damaging crops worth millions. Authorities have estimated that crops worth around 750 million rupees have been damaged in the recent rains in ten districts of the state. Farmers said the most affected crops were mangoes, as a huge portion of unripe mangoes had fallen in the hailstorm. "Hailstorm has destroyed our entire crops, especially mango groves. All our toil has gone waste," said Ilaya, a farmer said. Andhra Pradesh, which stands first in production of mangoes, is also famous for its delicious and rare variety of mangoes.

         A steep fall has already been predicted in the mango production in the state as foggy mornings and high day temperatures had affected the flowering, which would result in low yield. Authorities assessed nearly half the standing crops has been damaged. "We have crop damaged in almost 50 percent of the total area in (Telengana region). Crops in 23,365 hectares of area have been destroyed. Apart from this, damages are reported in 12,486 hectares and further," said Ashutosh Mishra, state's relief commisisoner.

          Though farmers depend on weather gods for a good yield of their farming, untimely rains are harmful for the crops. As India faces the national elections, the farmers are not likely to get major support from the government as it would violate the election code of conduct. Andhra Pradesh has voted both for assembly and parliamentary elections on April 20 and 26. Though the polling in the state is over, the election code will be applicable till the counting is taken up on May 13.
April 29, 2004

First sky bus in Goa is set for trial run by May-end (Go To Top)

         Madgaon (Goa): A sky bus, an electric powered train, is all set for its trial run in Goa. The sky bus is essentially a single-coach electric powered train suspended 30 feet off the ground on overhead rails. An innovative idea of modern transport, the hanging train in the sky will run on specially designed poll tracks in Madgaon by the end of next month. Goa would be the first state in the country to be introducing the new mode of city transport. The sky bus is the brainchild of B. Rajaram, managing director of Konkan Railway Corporation Limited which is credited with laying the country's most treacherous rail route running by southwestern coastline. "I am hoping that the work on track should be over by 1st of May and the coaches should be ready by the 15th of May. Between May 15th and 30th there would be preliminary trial run. On May 30th there would be a public demonstration of the sky bus service. The initial length of the track would be 1.6 km and the speed of the bus could go upto 90 kms," Rajaram said.

           For the test drive, the sky bus will be laid over a 10 kilometre stretch between two cities in Goa - Panaji and Mapusa. The skybus aims to provide big cities with a cheap alternative mode of transport. If the trial project succeeds, it might serve as an ideal model for congested metros like Mumbai and Delhi. "We would like to see what other states do. We are told that Mumbai has taken interest and is trying to work out there. So we would like to see the experience over there. Delhi is already experimenting with differnt modes of transport. So we would not venture into it straight way but if the project is viable in Mumbai, then it would also suit Delhi and we are keen to have modes of transport which would be able to alleviate the problem of commutation," said Shailja Chandra, Chief Secretary, Delhi. Railway officials say the environment friendly bus which is estimated to cost 50 paisa per kilometre should save foreign exchange worth 1,000 billion dollars on the import of fossil fuels. The cost of construction of track is also estimated at Rs. 500 million per kilometer as compared to around 1.50 billion rupees for a normal train track. India would be the first country in the world to be using such a mode of public transport.
April 17, 2004

Manali villagers protest film shooting (Go To Top)

         Manali: People in the hill resort of Manali have protested against an ongoing film shoot, which also features Amitabh Bachchan, saying unchecked filmings were threatening the region's ecology. The picturesque Manali, located in the Himalayas, is a favourite destination of tourists as well as filmmakers for its cool weather, undulating hills and breath-taking valleys. However, locals have raised their objections against the unscrupulous usage of the locations by film crews.

         "We had planted trees and even fenced the area but the film crews come and as you can see that not a single tree is left. They are completely spoiling the area with filth and plastic. Why is this going on? We don't know...the government is taking bribe. If this continues, how will we protect the forest? Absolutely no shooting should be allowed here," Sunder Singh, a member of the village council, said. The residents have complained that the film's crew including Bollywood director Anil Sharma, actors Bachchan and Bobby Deol, have spoiled the beauty of the location.

         Forest officials also admitted that the crew have violated the rules for wiring and constructing make-shift sets. "There is some wiring and digging and some structures have also been raised, which are in violation...we are removing them," A.S. Paul, Forest Range officer, said. Locals in Manali heavily depend on tourism industry for their livelihood. Tourism is the mainstay of the state's economy which generates about 100 million US dollars annually. About 500,000 foreign tourists visited Himachal Pradesh last year.
April 5, 2004

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