The Hindu : New Delhi News : Inside Delhi

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Dec 20, 2005

New Delhi

New Delhi

Inside Delhi

Toy bank for poor kids

Like good old Santa Claus who showers gifts on little ones, former Prime Minister I.K. Gujral presented colourful toys to underprivileged children at Sunehri Bagh in the Capital over the weekend. With the small but significant gesture he also gave the go-ahead to a novel project, "Toy Bank", started by former Union Minister Vijay Goel.

Congratulating Mr. Goel for bringing joy into the lives of unfortunate kids who long for toys but cannot afford them, Mr. Gujral said: "Now, every child in the Capital can become a proud owner of a toy. I call upon my brothers and sisters to come forward and join this campaign. You can either give away your old toys or even ask your neighbour to do so. I am sure this step will do a lot of good to the country and also bring happiness into the lives of a number of children."

The Toy Bank is already flooded with toys that look new but are actually old, discarded ones that have been dry-cleaned. A number of students of public schools, residents of Model Town and Kamla Nagar have also donated their old toys for the cause. But it took the persuasive skills of Vidyun, Mr. Goel's daughter, who personally went to various schools and requested principals to urge their students to voluntarily donate their old toys.

"Earlier a family used to have four or five siblings. A toy travelled from the hands of elder brother/sister to the younger one, but nowadays a family is restricted to one or two kids so the toy does not travel to many hands, hence they are dumped in good condition. Our aim is to collect those toys and then distribute them among underprivileged children," said Mr. Goel.

Madhur Tankha

Fuel more precious than life

Driving through the stretch between Defence Colony and Moolchand flyovers in South Delhi can convince anyone that two-wheeler riders care little for their own lives, let alone others', to save a few drops of fuel.

The stretch between these two flyovers has no traffic intersections. Until about a couple of years ago there used to be a T-point that allowed traffic coming from Moolchand flyover to turn right towards Lajpat Nagar market. But that was closed to ensure smooth flow of traffic.

While pedestrians often manage to make their way through the barricade on the central verge and cross the road amid unending traffic, what has enhanced the risk further is use of these "openings" by two-wheeler riders. There are at least four such points. One is right at the foot of the Moolchand flyover (towards Defence Colony) and the second is at some distance from it.

The third opening is near the T-point (from where one can take left towards Defence Colony while coming from Moolchand) and the fourth is again a few metres ahead.

So, even as motorists drive on the stretch without anticipating any interruption, two-wheelers simply cut across forcing many to come to a screeching halt.

Only the other day, a Hyundai Accent driver was forced to jam on the brakes when a two-wheeler suddenly emerged from a cut in the central verge. A Santro, which was behind the Accent, too had to come to a sudden stop. The motorcyclist, who had a woman pillion driver, drove away unmindful of the tragedy he could have caused.

The official agencies concerned probably should put stronger barricades on the central verge and install signage indicating the U-turn that is already available from underneath both flyovers.

Prashant Pandey

Honour for Marriot

Showing that the private sector is not far behind in the race to conserve energy, Marriott Welcomhotels was conferred the Certificate of Merit in the commercial building (private sector) category at the National Energy Conservation Award 2005 this past week.

With the honour, Marriott becomes the only five-star deluxe hotel in the country to have won this award. The award was presented to ITC Hotels Division Executive Vice-President (Operations) Pawan Verma by the President, A. P. J. Abdul Kalam.

The Union Ministry of Power presents the National Energy Conservation Awards to promote and inspire energy conservation and they are a means to institutionalise the energy efficiency movement in the country by identifying and giving recognition to the energy conservation efforts undertaken by different firms and industries.Marriott Welcomhotels has won the award for adopting a systematic and conscious approach towards energy conservation over the years and consistently reducing its energy costs.

Bindu Shajan Perappadan

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