DEHRA DUN, 9 AUG: The state government is opposed to the proposed notification of the Union government to declare Gaumukh-Uttarakhand stretch an eco-sensitive zone.

NEW DELHI: The national advi Jan. 13: The national advisory committee of Intach an NGO involved in conservation, has decided to take up initiatives for getting the 135-km stretch of river Ganga from Gomukh, its point of origin, to be declared ecological and cultural heritage zone.

The Prime Minister-headed National Ganga River Basin Authority (NGRBA) has given a green signal for declaring the 130-km area between Gomukh and Uttarkashi as the

Yoga guru Swami Ramdev will now play a key role in the campaign to save the Ganga river, which is being spearheaded by the Ganga Raksha Manch. The Yoga guru and other sadhus participating in the campaign to save the Ganga will use the mala (garland) and the bhala (trident) to convince people to join in. "With the mala, we will welcome people to contribute and do shramdaan in the campaign and with the bhala we will impress upon them the cultural, religious and national significance of the Ganga river," a spokesman of the Ganga Raksha Manch told this correspondent on Friday.

One person was killed and nine others, including five foreign tourists, were injured when a part of the Gaumukh glacier moved and hit these persons near Gaumukh last evening. A team of the Uttarkashi police, forest personnel and rescue workers today reached the spot and carried the injured back to Bhojwasa for treatment. According to Uttarkashi SP Nilesh Anand Bharne, part of the Gaumukh glacier fell on tourists in the area killing a sadhu and injuring four American and one British tourists. Two tourists from West Bengal were also injured.

TIMES VIEW Keep off the business of faith Who said the government is insensitive to the needs of the public? Keeping in mind the religious sentiments of many Hindus, post offices in Ghaziabad have started to sell bottled Ganga water. They will earn a commission on each bottle sold. A private company and Garhwal Vikas Mandal, a government body, are responsible for procurement and packaging of the water sourced from Gaumukh in the Himalayas.

Every year in from April to July, over one lakh visitors trek 20 km along the Ganga to reach at 14,000 feet above sea level, the Gomukh glacier, the source of one of India's mightiest rivers.