University staff may join teachers stir
SHIMLA, Aug 19 — More than 100 teachers have been sitting on dharna outside the V.C's office for the past nine days. Other senior university employees could also join the strike as the UGC scales relate to them as well.

Plea to screen Gujjars
SHIMLA, Aug 19 — Swami Krishnananda, president of the All-India Hindu Mahasangh, has urged the government to create a no-man zone in high ranges of Chamba bordering the troubled Doda district of Jammu and Kashmir and regulate the movement of nomadic Gujjars.

MCI team inspects medical college
KANGRA, Aug 19 — A two-member team of the Medical Council of India (MCI) yesterday completed its two-day appraisal of Dr Rajendra Prasad Medical College, Tanda, for its recognition.

Rail line survey complete: MP
BILASPUR, Aug 19 — The Himachal BJP chief and Member Parliament, Mr Suresh Chandel, has declared that survey for the Bhanupali - Bilaspur-Rampur rail line has been completed up to Berry near Barmana near here.

BJP to contest Baijnath seat
HAMIRPUR, Aug 19 — The BJP will field a candidate from the Baijnath Vidhan Sabha seat, where a by-election is to be held shortly. This was stated here last night by Mr Suresh Chandel, the HP BJP chief.

• Bank officers stage dharna
• 12 persons held

• Students protest against attack
• Dharna by primary teachers

University staff may join teachers stir
From Our Correspondent

SHIMLA, Aug 19 — More than 100 teachers have been sitting on dharna outside the V.C's office for the past nine days. Other senior university employees could also join the strike as the UGC scales relate to them as well.

Nowhere has a government reduced announced pay scales, say the protesting teachers.

The HRD Ministry has no right to ignore the UGC, which is basically empowered to look after the interests of higher education in the country, says a senior professor. There should be a separate pay commission for teachers like there is for the banking sector, the LIC and other sectors.

There should be no narrow comparison of the teaching community with the bureaucracy or other services for even in poor countries like Bangladesh, Pakistan, Malaysia and Indonesia teachers are well paid. Nowhere in the world are teachers told to generate their own resources , says Dr Javeed Alam, a renowned political science professor.

Every university teacher has to invest some money from his salary each month to maintain a personal library, computers. E-mail and Internet facilities for which no grant is ever given, he says. Dr Alam, himself, bought a personal computer after withdrawing money from his provident fund. Surprisingly one is not allowed to draw money from the provident fund for computers or books. In this way the right to information is denied to the teaching community, he added.

A lot of other professions have no such specialised requirement, he says.

Professors like A.R. Khan, M.K. Sharma, Kulwant Rana, Jaidev, Gopal Singh and Shyam Parsad are known on campus for maintaining good personal libraries.

"We are not like bureaucrats who just spend on an India Today and Femina and do not buy a single book in a year", says an agitated young lecturer of economics.

The new package was given without conducting any negotiations or even taking the chairman of the UGC into confidence, says Dr Rajinder Chauhan, president of the teachers association.

In no other service are conditions imposed for promotions. There are eight promotions for an IAS officer but just three promotions for a university teacher even with conditions he said. In other services promotions are time-bound. For us they are condition-bound. These conditions should be waived.

Because of such conditions Dr Javeed Alam was refused a professorship ironically after being tested by a Professor of Chemistry and then chairman of the Selection Committee. "Having received offers from outside institutes Dr Alam is quitting the university in disgust", said Dr Chauhan, who is also a political science teacher.

The Kothari Committee of 1964, Sen Committee of 1973, Mehrotra Committee of 1986 and Rastogi Committee of 1997 have all agreed that teachers should get better scales than "A" grade services. Then why are we being denied our legitimate right, said one teacher. No perks or other facilities were given to teachers as was the case in other services. Only 10 per cent of teachers are given houses by HPU, Shimla. For others Rs 500 is given as house rent. No telephone or vehicles are given either they said.

The president of HPU Officers Association, Mr D.R. Sayal expressed his solidarity with striking teachers and said other employees may join them in the near future.

A section of teachers expressed the fear that some pro-BJP teachers may sabotage their strike.

Plea to screen Gujjars
Tribune News Service

SHIMLA, Aug 19 — Swami Krishnananda, president of the All-India Hindu Mahasangh, has urged the government to create a no-man zone in high ranges of Chamba bordering the troubled Doda district of Jammu and Kashmir and regulate the movement of nomadic Gujjars to effectively curb the activities of Kashmiri militants who have struck twice in the area.

Condemning the killing of three Gaddis in Sappa Chauli village here today, Swami Krishnananda said by killing people of the majority community, the militants were trying to create communal trouble in the peaceful state. He said it was common knowledge that they were carrying out their nefarious activities with the active support of some local Gujjars and as such it had become essential to screen them and regulate their movement.

The Gujjars should be given identity cards along with grazing permits and should not be allowed to move close to the border. To achieve this a 20 km wide stretch along the border should be converted into a no-man zone.

Swami Krishnananda expressed concern over the misuse of temple funds and urged Mr P.K. Dhumal, the Chief Minister, to set up a central trust to manage the temples covered under the Hindu Religious Shrines and Charitable Endowments Act as recommended by the Law Commission.

He criticised the Bilaspur police for not providing him security during the shrawan ashtami fair in Nainadevi.

Cong to hold rallies against price rise
From Our Correspondent

MANDI, Aug 19 — Mr Sat Mahajan, HPCC chief, today announced that the Congress Party would launch statewide rallies against the failure of the BJP government to check rising prices of essential commodities.

Talking to mediapersons Mr Mahajan said the BJP had made a mess of the economic front. Never before the onion had been sold at Rs 25 per kg. The prices of foodgrain, edible oils and vegetables had gone beyond the reach of common man, he said.

He said the BJP government in the state had a thin majority and situation could change any time. The BJP government at the Centre was facing the worst-ever crisis and could fall any time, thanks to its coalition partners.

He said the BJP government could never have been installed in Himachal if the BJP were not in power at the Centre. During his ongoing statewide tour he had observed that people were totally disillusioned with the BJP rule in the state and at the Centre. "I am exploring ways and means to bring the party back to power in the state", he asserted.

The presence of hundreds of workers at his meetings at Hamirpur, Una, Kulu, Lahaul and Spiti and Mandi vindicated that people were fed up with the BJP within five months, he claimed.

Mr Sat Mahajan disowned his reported remarks that "I do not recognise anyone as my leader in the state and that my leader is Mrs Sonia Gandhi alone", and added that these words had been wrongly attributed to him.

Replying to another question he said he held Mr Virbhadra Singh in high esteem and had worked under him as a minister.

Replying to another question Mr Mahajan admitted that a vast majority of Congressmen in Mandi district were opposed to the suggestion of taking back Mr Sukh Ram into the party. He, however, added that in politics many strange things could happen.

Earlier in the day a nine-hour long meeting of the DCC continued at Gandhi Bhavan where members expressed resentment against Mr Mahajan for his reported remarks favouring the admission of Sukh Ram into the party.

MCI team inspects medical college
From Our Correspondent

KANGRA, Aug 19 — A two-member team of the Medical Council of India (MCI) yesterday completed its two-day appraisal of Dr Rajendra Prasad Medical College, Tanda, for its recognition.

The MCI had earlier denied recognition to the college on the basis of lack of hostel facilities within the premises, long distance between the college and the hospital, shortage of staff and non existence of para-clinic block.

Dr R.D. Bansal and Dr Vishno Kumar, members of the appraisal team, would submit their report to the MCI which would subsequently submit the report to the Supreme Court where a case regarding recognition of the college was pending.

Prof Dr Chanderama Anand, Head of the Department of Anatomy, said a para-clinic had been set up in the building and construction work of the hostel and residential buildings within the campus was in progress. New appointments had been made and shortage of staff was almost over, added Dr Anand.

Rail line survey complete: MP
From Our Correspondent

BILASPUR, Aug 19 — The Himachal BJP chief and Member Parliament, Mr Suresh Chandel, has declared that survey for the Bhanupali - Bilaspur-Rampur rail line has been completed up to Berry near Barmana near here.

Addressing media persons here yesterday Mr Chandel said the Rs 5.800-MW Kol Dam power project in the district was being negotiated with a private company. The work on the project would start within next six months.

Mr Chandel said the Central government had accorded sanction for a herbal garden here. Mr Chandel said a few days ago he had met the Communications Minister, Mrs Sushama Swaraj, in new New Delhi and apraised her about the difficulties faced by people of Hamirpur, Bilaspur and Una districts regarding telephone connections and telephone calls.

Mrs Sushama Swaraj has assured that these problems would be solved. The prominent pilgrimage Naina Devi would be linked with the district headquarters and the 360 km of optical fibre cable would be laid in these districts.

BJP to contest Baijnath seat
From Our Correspondent

HAMIRPUR, Aug 19 — The BJP will field a candidate from the Baijnath Vidhan Sabha seat, where a by-election is to be held shortly. This was stated here last night by Mr Suresh Chandel, the HP BJP chief.

Talking with mediapersons, he said the party would win the by-election as the people of the state had full faith in the policies and programmes of the BJP-HVC government.

He termed the assertion of the HP Congress Chief, Mr Sat Mahajan that the BJP government in the state would fall soon as absurd and said it was the Congress which was suffering from dissension.

Mr Chandel announced that the party would hold two separate training camps for the senior party functionaries of the state at Una and Kasauli from August 26 and 27 respectively.

Bank officers stage dharna
Tribune News Service

SHIMLA, Aug 19 — Members of the United Commercial Bank Officers Organisation staged a day-long dharna in front of the zonal office of the bank in protest against alleged irrational transfers and partisan attitude of the management.

Mr S.S. Thakur, general secretary of the organisation, warned the management that the protest would be intensified if the management did not give up its "vindictive" policy.

The officers are demanding review of transfers ordered in violation of policy and promotion effected through manipulation. It is also demanding speedy disposal of other service matters.

12 persons held
From Our Correspondent

KANGRA, Aug 19 — As many as 12 persons were rounded up by police and detained for interrogation today from different parts or the district as the police and intelligence agencies were put on a maximum alert after yesterday's killings of three Gaddis by Kashmiri militants in Chamba district bordering Jammu and Kashmir.

Nearly 400 Kashmiri labourers and shawl sellers have been registered with the police but the number of such immigrants is far higher. Most of them are in Dheera and Jawali areas of the district.

Students protest against attack
From Our Correspondent

KANGRA, Aug 19 — Students of the local DAV College today held a protest demonstration outside the college gate demanding action against those involved in yesterday's incident in which three students injured with a sharp-edged weapon by a group of students and outsiders.

The police has registered a case.

The Principal of the college, Mr S.K. Sharma, said two students were suspended and an enquiry was ordered. Measures were taken not to allow outsiders inside college.

Dharna by primary teachers
From Our Correspondent

KANGRA, Aug 19 — Government primary teachers of Kangra block today started a four-day dharna outside the Block Education Officer (Primary) here in protest against the alleged victimisation of teachers by transferring them to far-flung areas of the district.

Mr Hem Raj Chandel, president, Government Primary Teachers Federation, Kangra block, along with other office-bearers and teachers sat on dharna and described the recent transfers of teachers as politically motivated.