Pilgrims asked not to visit Badrinath for time being

The advice came from Ramesh Pokhriyak Nishank who also asked the pilgrims to visit the Badrinath temple only after the road links at Lambagar and Tangari are restored, said an official release.

He also talked to the officials of Border Road Organisation which is repairing the roads and asked them to reopen the road for traffic as early as possible.

Nishank also directed Chamoli District Magistrate Arun Dhaundiyal to ensure availability of food items for pilgrims who are held up at various points in and around Badrinath and keep a watch on restaurant owners and hoteliers so that they do not charge arbitrarily from pilgrims.

Dhaundiyal said nearly 1000 pilgrims are stranded in Badrinath area.
He said a temporary bridge has been erected in the area which is being used for people's movement on feet.

Dhaundiyal said a bridge and nearly 70-meter stretch of a road at Lambagar was blocked due to the landslides trigerred by the cloudburst in the area on July 19 disrupting traffic on Rishikesh-Badrinath national highway.

Meanwhile, the BRO personnel are working to mend road and clear the debris at Lambagar, the highly fragile zone in the Himalayan belt.

Dhaundiyal said BRO officials have assured him that they would restore the road link by Wednesday.

business
Amway wants India to be among top five global markets
Grand Rapids (US), July 20 (PTI) Buoyed by the success of its Indian venture, the USD 8 billion-company Amway wants the country to be among its top five business centres in the world in the next five years.
"I want India to move to among top five overseas markets of the company in the next five years," Amway chairman Steve Van Andel told the visiting reporters at the company's headquarters.
At present the top five markets of Amway, a direct selling company, include the US, China, Japan, South Korea and Russia with all having sales of over USD 1 billion.
"Let us see, India bumps out which market," Van Andel said while suggesting that India should frame laws for direct selling companies to ensure growth of person-to-person selling of products and also to effectively check fraudulent pyramid schemes.
Having started operations in India in 1998, Amway has about 5 lakh individual business owners. The company which sells over 100 products through individuals recorded sales of Rs 300 crore in 2008.
As regards the investments for expanding business in the country, the Amway chief said the company would make available resources for manufacturing products not only for the Indian consumers but also for other markets. MORE PTI CS SSA 07201704 DELHI
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"We can also look at the possibility of exporting products we make in India to other markets... if it is in the interest of consumers," Van Andel said.
Speaking to reporters, Amway's India head William S Pinckney said lot of investments have already been made in India and the company was in the process of doubling the capacity of its production units, which is likely to be completed by December.
As regards further investment in manufacturing units, he said, "we will look at that later... we also have to see availability of raw material as we keep the quality of our products same in all the markets."
Responding to the criticism that Amway products are expensive and beyond the reach of common man, Van Andel said, "the price they (consumers) pay is a fair price...They get the value for the price they pay."
Referring to the direct selling scheme under which the products are sold by one individual to others, and not through shops, he said, the system has helped about 30 lakh people around the world to earn additional income and live better lives.
On the question of Amway going public and getting its shares listed on bourses, he said the company had discussed the issue earlier also. "As of now there is no such move", he said without ruling out the possibility of transforming Amway into a public limited company in future. PTI CS SSA 07201743 DELHI

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RAINS KONARK
Sun Temple under knee deep water
Bhubaneswar, Jul 20 (PTI) The Sun Temple at Konark, a World Heritage site 60 km from here, was knee deep in water today following torrential rains triggered by low pressure, threatening the structure and inconveniencing tourists.
Visitors to the Sun Temple, also known as Black Pagoda, had to wade through two to three feet deep water which had accumulated around the historic site following heavy downpour.
While a large number of tourists returned without having a proper look at the world famous monument since yesterday, some of the visitors waded through the water to view the temple.
"It was extremely difficult to reach the temple due to water-logging. Though I managed to reach the structure, my wife failed to do so as she found it tough," said Chinmay, a 40-year-old visitor after returning from Konark.
For his wife, Pratiti the visit turned out to be highly disheartening. "The authorities should have taken steps to unclog the drains near the temple," she said.
Locals pointed out that water-logging at the Sun Temple has been a regular feature for the last couple of years. "Whenever it rains heavily for long, the problem crops up as there is no proper outlet," said a resident of a nearby village.
A social worker from the area, Rabindra Kumar Bahinipati said water-logging could damage the temple. Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has built a soak pit and when excess water accumulates, it is pumped out. More PTI SKN MM mm dkc 07201441 kolkata


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RAINS KONARK TWO LAST
Bahinipati said prolonged water-logging, which is an acute problem on the northern side of the 13th century monument, is likely to have an adverse impact on the structure.
"Though plans are afoot to put in place a proper drainage system around the Sun Temple but no concrete measure has been taken", he said.
Senior ASI officials were not available to throw light on the problem and measures being taken to deal with it.
The historical monument has been in news recently with reports of dislocation of some stones from the structure, sparking apprehension about its preservation.
Following this, Orissa government had last month asked a joint committee comprising representatives of ASI, district adiministration of Puri and state culture department to verify the matter and submit a report.
ASI, which looks after protection of the temple, has been maintaining that the monument was in a good state, the sources said. PTI SKN MM mm dkc 07201443 kolkata