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Jan 2005
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Leh gears up for ice hockey tournament

     Ladakh: With the harshest winters on in Ladakh, people in this remote area in are gearing up for the annual ice hockey championship. With the entire area cut off from the rest of the country, children can be seen in groups preparing for the tournament, slated to begin in the third week of this month. The children, both girls and boys, are training hard for the event considered as most prestigious for the residents here. Mohammed Ajaz, a national level player said, that they attend special coaching camps before the championship. Ajaz added that events like ice hockey championship would go a long way in promoting sports in the remote region. "Ice hockey is usually played in Ladakh and Shimla and at this time there is a huge scope of Ladakhi players to play at international level," said Ajaz. "This year we are practicing hard because last year we were the runners up. But, this year we want to win. This year our team is in good form and two of our players have already played at international level," said Faisal Ahmed, another player from Ladakh. The Jammu and Kashmir state government had spent nearly 45 million rupees for refurbishing infrastructure in the remote Ladakh region, one of the least developed areas in the country. Winter games in the country are still more or less an amateur sports with professional players lacking international standards. Last year, sportsmen from Ladakh dominated the annual winter games held in the state's picturesque Gulmarg region. Several skiers from the region also represent at the national level, with few skiers also representing India at the international level in China last year. The other winter sport event lined up for this year includes the National Skiing Championship to be held in March.
-Jan 6, 2005

Flights delayed, trains cancelled as fog envelopes capital (Go to Top)

Stranded passengers at the International airport in New Delhi due to a thick blanket of fog

      New Delhi: Fog once again haunted the capital after remaining out of the sight for a few days. Flights were delayed even as the minimum temperature dipped to 5.6 degrees Celsius. Fog was not very strong till around six a.m., but soon after it, it gripped the city, reducing the visibility to 100 metres, informed the Meteorological Department said. An Airports Authority of India spokesman said, "Up to 0600 hours, it was all okay at the runway, when the RVR (Runway Visibility Range) was recorded at 1100 metres. But by 0615 hours, it reduced to 300 metres and went on decreasing. At around 0800 hours, the RVR was mere 150 metres." Even though the fog gripped the capital, some morning flights were able to take off by the time the fog started gathering. But after 0630 hours, flights could not take off and air services from the capital could resume only after 1000 hours, the spokesman said. Meanwhile, an international flight -- Lufthansa 762 -- landed using the CAT-3A landing system, he said. Other transport services were also affected. Rail services continued to be disrupted due to foggy conditions in north India. Six trains were cancelled and several others delayed. Kalindi Express from Delhi to Farukhabad, Unchahar Express from Ambala to Allahabad and Lal Quila Express from Delhi to Sealdah were cancelled, while Mahananda Express from Katihar to Delhi, was late by 18 hours, a Railways spokesman said.
- Jan 6, 2005

Gulmarg turns snow-white (Go to Top)

     Gulmarg: A large number of tourists are arriving in the famous hill resort of Gulmarg to enjoy the picturesque region wearing a snow-blanket. Tourists, mainly from southern and western parts of the country, have thronged the valley, which received three feet snowfall on the New Year's eve. Suresh, a tourist from Gujarat, said they rushed to Gulmarg just to witness the snow-covered locales. "The snow is good here. We are very happy to be here. People out here are also good. We are going to enjoy a lot," said ecstatic Suresh who had seen snowfall for the first time. A tourist guide said sudden influx of tourism had given a boom to their business, which was in a shambles due to the ongoing militancy. "On New Year, there were lots of tourists, which was not expected at this time of year. Generally it is off-season but there were lots of tourists. It looked like May-June," said Mohammed Ismail. Gulmarg, a scenic tourist resort, is about 40 km east of Srinagar.
- Jan 3, 2005

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