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Wednesday,
March 13, 2002, Chandigarh, India  
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BJP
suspends key party leader Keeping
flock intact is Cong worry Series of
BJP, Cong rallies next week Row over
nomination of councillors Shivratri
celebrated with fervour When
celebrations turned tragic |
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Home
Dept examining issue of CBI probe Plan to
fell green trees stalled DC:
Viral hepatitis outbreak contained NPA for
ayurvedic doctors in HP Villagers
shun food for bridge Tibetan women take out procession Poor security outside exam centres flayed Larji project nears completion M.Sc (maths) classes in Hamirpur college Vice-chief of cantt board may go
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BJP suspends key party leader Shimla, March 12 Mr Thakur, who was being seen as a successor of his father, was not only denied party ticket from the Hamirpur constituency in the last Assembly election but also unceremoniously removed from the presidentship of the district unit of the party. He has been lying low ever since. However, over the past few months, he had become active and started organising old BJP workers who had been sidelined. Hamirpur district has been worst hit by dissidence, with old party workers revolting against the sitting legislators in Nadaunta and Nadaun. The immediate cause of action appears to be the “Mitra Milan”, a congregation of old party workers, held at Hamirpur at which Mr Thakur criticised the Dhumal government and the party leadership. He even claimed that Mr Dhumal had offered him vice-chairmanship of State Administrative Tribunal to buy peace, which he rejected. Mr Subhash Sama, Pradhan of Manjhol panchayat, was also suspended while Mr Dhyan Chand, an activist of the Nadaunta constituency was expelled from the party for six years. By taking action against Mr Thakur, the party leadership has tried to send the message across to the cadres that indiscipline will be dealt with a heavy hand, but it is likely to have serious repercussions for the party across the state. While the high command succeeded in ending hostilities between the rival Dhumal and Shanta Kumar camps by removing Mr Narinder Modi as in charge of the party affairs in the state, infighting had been continuing unabated at the lower level. The party workers who felt ignored have even floated parallel outfits in Hamirpur, Sirmaur and other districts. In Solan, Mr Mohinder Sofat, former minister who was denied the Assembly ticket and for the Rajya Sabha seat, has been active and regularly holding meetings of old party workers. There has been a revolt even in Rampur where the party plays second fiddle to the Congress. In the emerging situation, the party may have to contend with open revolt in more districts. With the elections less than a year away, the dissidents are likely to make their presence felt. |
Keeping
flock intact is Cong worry Shimla, March 12 The election for the seat being vacated by Mrs Chandresh Kumari, President, All-India Mahila Congress, will be held on March 27. What is worrying the Congress leadership is that during the elections for two Rajya Sabha seats in the past four years, some of the MLAs violated the whip and voted for candidates of the ruling
BJP-HVC alliance. The election for the Rajya Sabha seat is crucial for the Congress in view of the coming Assembly elections this time. The embarrassment will be more for them in case cross-voting is repeated. The Congress leadership, that had said it would identify the “black sheep”, has failed to do so. Earlier, cross-voting by Congress MLAs was done during the election of Mr Anil Sharma, son of HVC chief Sukh Ram, and then again when Mr Kripal Parmar of the BJP was sent to the Rajya Sabha. Observers are keeping their fingers crossed over the performance of the Congress, which has yet to present a picture of unity. The Congress, with its strength of 28 MLAs in the 68-member Assembly, is not in a position to make its candidate win for the Rajya Sabha. On the other hand, the BJP has 35 members and is supported by the two-member HVC group and an Independent, Mr Ramesh
Dhawala, who is also a minister. Mr Mohinder Singh, an unattached member, who has been expelled from the
HVC, is governed by the whip of the HVC, but he has now come out openly against the BJP. The Congress has sent a panel of four persons to the high command for selection of candidate. What is being described as significant is that it is for the first time that the CLP leader, Mr Virbhadra Singh, and the PCC chief, Mrs Vidya Stokes, sat together in the PCC headquarters here yesterday to select the candidate for the Rajya Sabha seat. Mr Virbhadra Singh had been avoiding the PCC office ever since Mrs Stokes was made party chief. He went there only on occasions when senior leaders of the Congress came from Delhi to address meetings. On the other hand, Chief Minister P. K. Dhumal has played his cards well by securing the BJP ticket for Mr Suresh
Bhardwaj, who belongs to the upper areas of Shimla district. At one time Mr Bhardwaj was considered as a man of dissident and a lieutenant of Union Minister Shanta Kumar. With the ticket going to Mr
Bhardwaj, the BJP hopes to provide representation to all three regions of the state in Parliament. |
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Series of BJP, Cong rallies next week Shimla, March 12 The Chief Minister, Prof Prem Kumar Dhumal, and the Congress Legislature Party leader, Mr Virbhadra Singh, have already finalised the venue for their rallies. The PCC chief, Mrs Vidya Stokes, is also expected to visit the area. Mr Virbhadra Singh will address a meeting at Hamirpur which is the district headquarters of Prof Dhumal’s constituency on March 18. Professor Dhumal will be on a foundation stone-laying spree in the Kangra region from March 19. He will lay the foundation stone of Capt. Vikram Batra Government College at Paraur in Palampur. Mr Virbhadra Singh will address a public meeting at Chamba on March 20 and meet Congress activists at Kangra, Dharamsala, Bhatiat and other places. |
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Row over nomination of councillors Dharamsala, March 12 The councillors, rising above political affiliations, tried to express their resentment over the government decision by boycotting the oath-taking ceremony of the nominated members here yesterday. The councillors — Mr Subhash Chaddha, Mr Bhanu Nautiyal and Mrs Champa Rana — were nominated to the council through a government notification issued on January 8. Ever since, the elected councillors have been up in arms against the move and passed a resolution, urging the government to cancel these nominations on January 28. With the government refusing to oblige the elected members, they decided to stay away from the oath-taking ceremony. The elected councillors said two of those nominated had lost the election. “Normally prominent citizens who do not wish to get embroiled in political wrangling and are keen to contribute towards the development of the town are nominated but the recent nomination is against this spirit”, one of the councillors said. Even BJP workers are unhappy with the nominations of the councillors, all of whom belong to their party. They said they were never consulted over the matter. “Our grudge is that if at all the nominations were to be made, at least the party workers should have been taken into confidence so that the most deserving and capable ones could have got a chance”, a BJP councillor said. The nominated councillors on the other hand said they had been given an opportunity to contribute towards the development of the town and they would try their best to promote it as an international tourist destination. |
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Shivratri
celebrated with fervour Shimla, March 12 Thousands of devotees thronged temples of the Lord Shiva in various parts of the state and offered prayers. In Shimla, queues of devotees were seen in temples to pay obeisance. People offered milk, water, flowers and sweets to the God. Bhajan-kirtan programmes were organised. Temples were beautifully decorated and people offered prayers as per their rituals. “Bhandara” (community kitchen) programmes will be organised tomorrow. Governor Suraj Bhan and Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal have felicitated people on the occasion of Mahashivratri. They said, “the festival not only depicts the religious and cultural aspect but also brings joy and prosperity to the people”. They also expressed hope that the festival would bring equality in the lives of the people and inspire them to follow the path of welfare and goodness. HAMIRPUR: Mahashivratri was celebrated throughout the district with traditional fervour and gaiety. Temples of the Lord Shiva were colourfully decorated and thousands of people visited these right from the early morning till late evening. The main function in the district was held at Gasota village at Gasoteshwara Temple. Shivratri celebrations were also reported from Nadaun, Sujanpurtira and other parts of the district. KUMARHATTI: A record rush of devotees was witnessed at Pracheen Shiv Temple. That is situated along the Kalka-Shimla national highway. A large number of devotees were also seen heading towards a cave having natural Shivalingam. The cave is known as Panchmunda Temple and is situated on a hiltop facing Barog. YAMUNANAGAR: Mahashiv-ratri was celebrated with great devotion by devotees here. From early hours of morning, devotees started thronging various temples. Queues could be seen outside Sanatan Dharma Temple and historical Shiva Temple situated in Bhatli village, nere here. Langars were also organised at certain temples. KARNAL: Over 2 lakh devotees paid obeisance at Sanghmeshwar Mahadev Temple at Arunai, about 65 km from here. Devotees raising slogans — "Har Har Mahadev and "Bhole Baba ki jai" — performed jala abhishek" of the Lord Shiva. There was a very poor police arrangement to control the crowd. Social organisations organised over 24 community kitchens. Thousands of devotees also visited the historic temples of Sthaneshwar Mahadev and Dukh Bhanjeneshwar Mahadev in Kurukshetra. Mahant Parbhatpuri of Sthaneshwar Temple told TNS that over 1 lakh devotees had made offerings of milk, "gangajal" in the temple since last night. Yajnas were performed for communal harmony and peace in temples at Arunai and Kurukshetra. |
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When celebrations turned tragic Kasauli, March 12 The mishap has left an indelible imprint on the near and dear ones of the deceased. Purshottam, the bridegroom, who was discharged last evening after being treated for fractures appeared sombre finding it difficult to grapple with the tragedy of having lost his father and an uncle. Ram Dei, the inconsolable mother of the bridegroom, was totally numbed at the tragedy and could hardly speak. No words could lessen the loss of the family as 11 pyres were lit. The worst affected family of Dyals. The sole
bread-earner has suffered multiple fractures and it would be long when he could return to work. The tragedy also seized a Parwanoo-based photographer, Khem Chand, who resided at Taksaal near Parwanoo. He has left behind two small daughters and a wife. The daughters, Ritika and Yaswini, unaware of what fate had stolen from them, appeared their usual selves. The relatives present at the residence told the reporter that they were highly disappointed with the lackluster attitude of the administration especially the local MLA. They complained that heavy expenditure to the tune of Rs 20,000-30,000 had been incurred on the treatment of the patients admitted at the PGI, but the administration has not arranged adequate funds. While they have managed to arrange Rs 30,000 for the operation of another accident victim all others were not in a condition to bear the expenditure. The affected families were critical of the shabby treatment meted out to the patients at the ESI dispensary where there was no one to attend the patients for a long time. It was only after a session of sloganeering against the hospital authorities by those present that some attention was paid to the patients. This was despite the fact that many were rushed to the dispensary in a critical condition. Meanwhile, the Deputy Commissioner has announced an ex-gratia payment of Rs 25,000 to the next of the kin of the deceased. The viscera of the driver has been sent to the forensic lab for ascertaining if he was drunk at the time of the accident. But the families were, however, all praise for the driver and said that he was highly experienced. It may be mentioned that the narrow road was not a regular road and was not deemed fit for plying heavy vehicles. The villagers, however, stated that all kind of vehicles plied on the road for carrying construction material to various sites. |
Home
Dept examining
issue of CBI probe Shimla, March 12 The committee of the Vidhan Sabha on public sector undertakings has recommended to the government that the CBI should be asked to investigate into the irregularities between 1997 and 1999. It is learnt that the Home Department is examining the issue before referring the matter to the CBI. The Chief Minister, Prof P.K. Dhumal, day confirmed that the matter was being examined. The issue pertaining to AIPIL has been coming in the successive sessions of the Assembly and in the last session a report of the audit pointing out grave irregularities was placed on the table of the House by the Horticulture Minister, Mr Narendera
Bragta. The House committee had held Mr Thind, an IGP, responsible for the irregularities. The earlier report had accused the then management of showering undue favours on certain people and payment of inadmissible commission. The mismanagement had resulted in a loss of Rs 1.56 crore, the report said.
AIPIL incurred an expenditure of Rs 1.84 lakh on the MD’s tour to London and New York without preferring any claims. Although the company owned a
Xerox machine, a sum of Rs 1.44 lakh was spent on photostat through a private establishment. Mr Thind is also in the news following publication of a public notice by the state government asking him to report on duty to the DGP as he was being treated on unauthorised absence from April 1,2001 to December 26,2001. The registered letters being sent to him at his Chandigarh address had been returned undelivered, the notice said. |
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Plan to fell green trees stalled Shimla, March 12 The fund-starved state proposed to raise about Rs 100 crore annually by felling mature green trees under silvicultural operations. The state has 31 working plans but of these only 18 have been revised and approved by the Centre. Four more were being scrutinised by the Centre and likely to be approved shortly. The Forest Department, had on the basis of these 22 working, plans drawn up a proposal to remove 2.25 lakh cubic metre of standing volume of trees annually from the state’s forests. This is besides the 1.25 lakh cubic metre allotted to right holders under the timber distribution (TD) rules and 2.50 lakh cubic metre exploited under salvage markings. The silvicultural removals will include 1.05 lakh cubic metre of fir and spruce, which grow between the altitudinal limits of 8,000 ft to 10,000 ft where regeneration is very difficult, if not impossible, and 50,000 cubic metre of deodar, the most valuable timber species. On the current rates of royalty the Forest Department will earn about Rs 75 crore from these fellings, while another Rs 24 crore will go to the state exchequer as sales tax. The Forest Department had sought Rs 22 crore annually to carry out regeneration works in the affected area. However, the government is not willing to make any separate allocation for the purpose. No allocation, in fact has been made in the next year’s budget and the Finance Department has asked the Forest Department to carry out regeneration works by raising resources by itself. In such a situation, the Centre cannot even consider the state’s proposal for carrying out green fellings. Moreso because the proposal will also be scrutinised by the apex court. Thus, for a favorable consideration the state will have to make a firm commitment for providing Rs 22 crore annually over and above the existing allocation to get the nod for green fellings from the Centre, which has to abide by the court’s directions. |
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DC: Viral hepatitis outbreak contained Mandi, March 12 Talking to mediapersons he said as many as 167 cases of viral hepatitis have been treated so far. Only five persons were being treated at the regional hospital. He said joint inspection of pipelines was being made by the nagar parishad and the IPH Department to ensure that there were no leaking drinking water pipelines. He said a vigorous campaign had been launched by the IPH to chlorinate all natural water sources and springs of the town. A three member team of the IPH engineers was undertaking house-to-house inspection to ensure if potable water was hygienically fit for consumption. A special task force had been constituted to ensure that only fresh meat and chicken was sold. The Department of Animal Husbandry had been assigned the duty to ensure fresh supply of meat and chicken. Mr A.K. Mahajan, S.E., IPH, said all eight water sources catering to the needs of the town had been chlorinated and a strict vigil was being maintained. Earlier, the Deputy Commissioner held a meting of the departments concerned, including the CMO, health officer and president, nagar parishad, in this regard. |
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NPA for ayurvedic doctors in HP Chamba, March 12 The Ayurveda Minister said the state government had decided to provide NPA to ayurveda doctors on a par with the allopathic doctors with a view to improving their services in the state. Taking exception to the complaints regarding certain ayurveda doctors being absent from duty in several ayurveda institutions located in interior parts, the minister warned them to be punctual, failing which stern disciplinary action would be taken against them. The minister said nearly 2,000 staff members, including doctors and paramedical employees, had been recruited by the government in 1,158 ayurveda institutions functioning in the state during the past four years. He said of 1,158 ayurveda institutions, 611 were handling the national health programmes independently. Mr Mohan Lal said the government was spending 3 crore every year on the construction of ayurveda buildings. |
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Villagers
shun food for bridge Bilaspur, March 12 Addressing mediapersons, Congress leader “Bridge Construction Action Committee” convener Mr Thakur said despite repeated requests of thousands of people of the area, the government had not laid the foundation stone of this bridge. The action committee leaders warned that they would gherao Health and Family Welfare Minister Jagat Prakash Nadda at the inauguration of Nalwadi fair here on March 17 if their demand was not fulfilled. |
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Tibetan
women take out procession Dharamsala, March 12 Hundreds of Tibetan women, including nuns and schoolgirls, took out a procession from McLeodganj to Dharamsala, demanding a free Tibet and the release of the Panchen Lama, presently in Chinese custody. The Tibetan women raised anti-China slogans , demanding an end to the human rights violations under the communist Chinese regime in Tibet. The Tibetan women, who are observing the 43rd Tibetan Women Uprising Day, said the women in Tibet were being subjected to forced sterilisation and contraception, as they had even lost the right to birth. The Tibetan culture and tradition was under threat as women were being initiated into prostitution, a thing unknown to the land. They requested the international community to urge China to start a dialogue with the Tibetan spiritual leader, Dalai Lama, to find an amicable solution to the issue of Tibet at the earliest. |
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Poor security outside exam centres flayed Bilaspur, March 12 A meeting of the state executive of the union was held here on Monday evening demanding action against the three armed persons who had threatened invigilators at Govt High School,
Dehan, in Kangra district during the Hindi exam of class-X. the union demanded action on the report of the Headmaster, Mr Joginder Sharma, as the local police allegedly refused to register an FIR and apprehend those involved. It also condemned the alleged attempts of the government to scrap the HP Administration Tribunal and demanded that the policy should be scrapped, all vacancies of judges be immediately filled and permanent Benches be set up at Dharamsala and Mandi towns. |
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Larji project nears completion Mandi, March 12 The Larji Project would generate 6,000 million units of power annually and yield an annual revenue of Rs 150 crore to the state. The total cost of the project is likely to be Rs 800 crore. |
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M.Sc (maths) classes in Hamirpur college Hamirpur, March 12 Mr Dhiman said this while presiding over the annual prize-distribution function of the college. Ms Urmila Thakur, Parliamentary Secretary, chaired the function. The minister also inaugurated a computer laboratory of the college built at a cost of about Rs 25 lakh. He said the government had taken many steps for the uplift of the educational standard in the state. Its annual budget had increased from Rs 1 crore to Rs 8 crore during the past four years of the BJP government. Earlier, Dr Narendra Awasthi, Principal of the college, read out its annual report. |
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Move to shift HPPSC resented Shimla, March 12 The association said it would not be administratively convenient and feasible to shift the commission from here to any other place in the state as the government secretariat and the offices of various head of departments were presently located in
Shimla. |
Vice-chief of cantt board may go Kumarhatti, March 12 A letter has been submitted to the board’s Executive Officer, Mr Yogesh Kumar, by three civilian members from Wards 1, 2 and 3, withdrawing their support to Mr
Marwaha. They alleged that his absence from the board meeting on March 5, convened to finalise the long-pending water tariff issue, had been boycotted by them to show their resentment on the proposed hike in water tariff. They alleged that they were not taken into confidence while according on the issue.. Well-placed sources in the board’s office revealed that the removal of the Vice-President was inevitable as in such cases only civilian members were authorised to vote. |
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VHP holds yajna Shimla, March 12 Nearly 400 persons participated in the yajna held at the Boileauganj Maidan. Mr Gian Chand Sanotra, president of the state unit of the parishad, said jathas for shila poojan at Ayodhya would start from different places in the state tomorrow. |
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