The Indian Express               08.10.2013

MC to send stray cattle to pounds in Garhshanker and Nawanshahr

After trucks carrying stray cattle were torched while transporting them to Barsana, the Municipal Corporation has found a solution closer home. The civic body on Monday signed an MoU for sending stray cattle to pounds in Garhshanker and Nawanshahr. A total of 1,000 heads of cattle would be sent.

These pounds are managed by Swami Krishnanand. Around 1,100 acres is available for the pounds. Earlier MC had paid Rs 2,000 per head of cattle to cattle pounds but now Rs 3,500 would be paid. For approval of the same, the issue would be taken up in the meeting of the Finance and Contract Committee.

A MC team comprising Mayor Subhash Chawla, Joint Commissioner Rajiv Gupta and superintendent of slaughter house of MC visited the cattle pounds on Monday. Following this the MoU was signed.

"With cattle to be sent to Punjab, it is not a sensitive area. We are hopeful that transportation would be made available. If not, the MC can arrange for vehicles. An amount of Rs 35 lakh has been allocated for dealing with stray cattle so the process of transportation can be started immediately," Chawla said.

He added that the cattle pound were found to be satisfactory during the visit. There is ample open space and natural sources of water. Segregation of cattle is done and storage facilities for storage are available. He added that by the end of the year, the city is likely to become cattle free.

At present, cattle pound in the city is overflowing with stray cattle. The new cattle pound that is being build by the MC at Industrial Area is not ready yet. The drive of the MC to catch stray cattle and send these to cattle pounds in different places received a setback when 17 trucks carrying stray cattle to Barsana were torched in Haryana. This brought the process of sending cattle out at an halt. Transporters also expressed their unwillingness to make trucks available for the purpose.

The Times of India             04.10.2013

LMC workshop to helpcurb tobacco sale, ads

LUCKNOW: Lucknow Municipal Corporation is involving corporators and sanitary inspectors to make sure their wards don't carry hoardings or any other form of outdoor advertising promoting tobacco products and also that there are no tobacco or cigarette shops within 100 yards of schools.

To educate corporators, sanitary inspectors, health department workers and other staff on ill effects of tobacco consumption, a workshop was organised by the State Tobacco Control Cell and Cancer Aid Society under the chairmanship of Mayor on Thursday. This is a first of its kind workshop organised by a GoI funded NGO in LMC.

The workshop was attended by two prominent doctors from King George's Medical University, Dr Suryakant, HOD of pulmonary medicines and Dr Divya Gupta, a specialist on oral cancer, who gave presentations on various diseases associated with consumption of tobacco and related products. They educated inspectors and corporators on the symptoms as also preventive measures.

Mayor Dinesh Sharma said, "The workshop was an eye-opener for people who unconsciously fall prey to tobacco addiction. I recommend that corporators should learn and educate in their wards about ill-effects of tobacco on health

." He said the corporators should ensure in their wards that no hoarding or billboard should display tobacco products within 100 yards of any school. Also, no shops or stall should be allowed to sell these products outside schools. Mayor said both these proposals would be floated in the next house meeting of LMC.

LMC's community development officer said before pursuing with corporators to create awareness in various wards, LMC will first try to eradicate smoking and other tobacco consumption habit within its Lalbagh office.

Sharma said he would encourage corporators to organise such workshops in their wards quite frequently so that public can become aware about oral and lungs' diseases caused due to tobacco. "I have been approached by many NGOs in the past who work for tobacco eradication from society. I would ask these NGOs to organise similar workshops in various wards so that maximum people can benefit from it," he added.

The workshop suggested that apart from the person chewing tobacco, health of people who are in the vicinity as also the surrounding environment get affected. It is said that more than the revenues earned from production of tobacco in India is spent on treatment of diseases it causes.

Four NGOs working for this cause have already approached mayor for organising anti-tobacco workshops.