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Monday,
April 1, 2002, Chandigarh, India  
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HP to have IT varsity in private sector Ex-Mayor joins Him Lok Tantrik Morcha BJP dissidents’ show of strength
3 die in school bus mishap |
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Himachal to promote
adventure tourism 2,868 industrial units set up in HP: minister Dhumal opens memorial college
Panchayats oppose
proposal on bridge Yuva Morcha leader,
others join Congress VHP leader assails
Shanta Kumar Cong gears
up for
civic poll Demand for police post at Karian Plastic surgery
camp begins Captain dies in
car mishap Gen Mehta to
take charge of Western Command Stokes constitutes scrutiny panel HP police body meets CM
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HP to have IT varsity in private sector Shimla, March 31 The university being established at a cost of Rs 65 crore in the private sector will have academic tie-up with the University of Berkeley, USA. The bill to set up the first university in the private sector was passed by the Himachal Vidhan Sabha last week. While the Governor will be the Chancellor, the Managing Trustee of the Jaiprakash Sewa Sansthan, which is setting up the institution, will be the Pro-Chancellor. The trust will run the university on a “no-profit basis”. The seats in the university will be filled on all-India basis through entrance test. As many as 5 per cent seats of normal intake will be allocated to bonafide Himachali students over and above the merit. While the university will be completed over a period of five years, the Jaypee Institute of Information and Technology will start functioning from July 2002. This is the first in the series of 15 institutes to be set up in the state. The institute has come up within a period of less than two years on the pattern of Andhra Pradesh based on the industry-government partnership. The institute, to begin with, offers courses in information technology, electronics and bio-informatics in the first year. Bio-technology and computer sciences and engineering will be introduced in a phased manner. The institute will also offer post graduate courses from academic session 2005-2006. The Sansthan is already in the field of information technology and is running an institute of Information Technology at Noida. Second institute has been set up in the state and third is coming up near Guna in Madhya Pradesh. Besides the Jaypee Information Technology Institute being set up in Solan district, the Jaypee Industrial Training Centre for more than 450 students at Samirpur will also start functioning from 2002-2003. |
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HP varsity to set up centre of excellence Shimla, March 31 In all, 10 universities have been selected by the UGC for setting up centres of excellence in different disciplines. After the first round of presentations by the hundred-odd competing institutions, 22 universities were
shortlisted. The Himachal Pradesh University was selected finally on the basis of presentation made by Dr S.D. Sharma, Vice-Chancellor, for creating an “Island of excellence” in the institution. Giving details of the project, Dr Sharma said the university had been selected for excellence plus category. Out of the 10 selected institutions three would get Rs 3 crore as initial grant and the remaining given, including the HP university, would receive Rs 5 crore each. The Centre would start functioning from the ensuing academic session. It would have six thematic areas for activities namely natural Resources management, demography and manpower dynamics, socio-economic and political systems, planning and development, environment management, and history, culture and religion. It will be engaged in conduct of research studies, academic courses on Himalayan studies, workshops, seminar, conferences and roundtables, training programmes, consultancy and extension. It will also give awards and recognitions for outstanding works. In the first phase, courses in Himalayan studies, Himalayan ethnology, sustainable development in Himalayas, remote sensing and image processing technology, geographical information systems, history and culture of Himalayas, sociological research methods, languages of Himalayas and Himalayan literature from antiquity to modern times would be introduced from the next academic session. These courses would be inter-disciplinary in nature and would be conducted in an innovative, non-traditional and modular manner, various diplomas and degrees would be awarded on the basis of successful completion of specified modules with the requisite credits. There would be continuous internal evaluation basis on credit hours, assignments, seminars, field projects, laboratory experiments, participation in seminars and creativity shown in the utilisation of Himalayan resources. The assignments, field projects and experiments would be specific to the thematic areas of the institute with emphasis on the Himalayan region. The appointments in the new centre would be made on contract basis to keep the expenditure on salaries at the minimum. It would not exceed 20 per cent in any case. The institute would also start some need-based courses for the development of employable skills and optimum utilisation of the resources. These courses would be available to mountain people, as per the requirements ‘free of cost”. There will be also be a provision for substituting theoretical papers with term paper, fieldwork and innovations pertaining to the thematic areas. It would explore the natural resources of the region, particularly North- West Himalayas and identify appropriate mechanism to optimally utilise them for the societal welfare through the application of modern technology and traditional wisdom. Through research, instruction, publications and extension, it would help the people to acquire employable skills and values without any discrimination based on gender, ethnicity, caste, region and development. It would provide authentic information and expertise to policy makers, NGOs and researchers through the publication and dissemination of information, work for identification and optimum utilisation of natural resources of Himalayas, make available international expertise and linkage for helping the people of Himalayas, develop alternative sources of energies, inculcate entrepreneurial and employable skills, create awareness and provide training in environment management, help the society by providing easy access to the knowledge and understanding of rare scripts, Himalayan literature, architecture and mores to make the society learn from the ancient wisdom and indigenous traditional knowledge. The centre would be one among the outstanding international centers engaged in research, teaching and extension in the country and the world. |
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Ex-Mayor joins Him Lok Tantrik Morcha Shimla, March 31 Mr Manoj Kumar, who had floated the Shimla Vikas Manch, announced his decision to join the morcha at a press conference in presence of Mr Mohinder Singh, the convener of the morcha. With this, the number of constituents of the morcha has gone up to nine. Mr Manoj Kumar was expelled for anti-parties activities from the Congress last year. Mr Mohinder Singh said efforts were on to persuade the CPI and the Himachal Vikas Congress to join the morcha. The objective was to provide a third alternative to the BJP and the Congress, who had failed to fulfil the aspirations of people of the state. He said the morcha would contest all 24 seats and also released the first list of four candidates. The morcha would field Mr Rajinder Jinda, a former Congress councillor from Kanhlog (Ward No 18), Mr Rajiv Thakur from Summer Hill (Ward No 6), Mr Amendra Nagraik from Sanjauli (Ward No 22) and Ms Sunit Devi from Khalini (Ward No 19). Mr Mohinder Singh said large scale irregularities had been committed in the revision of electoral rolls and alleged that the final list was prepared at the residence of a BJP minister. While names of many voters were deleted on political considerations, the names of some others, who were not even permanent residents of the town, were included in the electoral rolls. He said for instance in the Lakkar Bazar area the names of members of minority community had been deleted and in Sanjauli ward those who were not permanent residents had been made voters. He said the much-publicised decision to allow construction of up to five-storeyed buildings in Shimla was a political gimmick. He said no one had been granted permission so far and the decision would be withdrawn after polls. Hundreds of residents had been denied electricity and water connections for constructing houses in violation of the building rules. The morcha would form a policy to regularise their structures and provide water and electricity to them, he said. A master plan would be framed to ensure planned development of the city and take care of the basic civic amenities like roads, drinking water and streetlights. He criticised the Centre for further reducing the rate of interest on the General Provident Fund by 0.5 per cent and urged the employees to use the corporation poll as an opportunity to teach a lesson to the BJP for its anti-employee policies. |
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BJP dissidents’ show of strength Hamirpur, March 31 Prominent among those who were present at the function were Mr Des Raj Rana, a former minister from Una, Mr Narendra Thakur, a former district BJP chief, Mr Amar Singh Chaudhry, a former MLA from Mewa (Hamirpur), Mr Pavan Thakur, a former vice-chairman of the Una Zila Parishad, Mr Joginder Singh from Nahan, Mr Chain Singh from Paonta Sahib, and Mr Dhian Chand Sharma, chief of the Nadaunta Bachao Baldev Sharma Hatao Manch. The organisers honoured prominent dissident leaders on the occasion and praised them for coming out openly against party leaders for having ignored them. Addressing the gathering, Mr Narendra Tahkur said he would fight against the anti-worker stance of party leaders. Lashing out at the Chief Minister, Mr Thakur said he was asked by Prof Prem Kumar Dhumal to stop opposing him but he had refused to oblige him. He said he was an elected district BJP chief but had been removed without valid reasons. Speaking on the occasion, Mr Des Raj Rana alleged that the state party chief Mr Jai Krishan Sharma, was behaving in an irresponsible manner and harming the cause of the party. Activists of the Nadaunta Bachao Baldev Sharma Hatao Manch said they would not sit silent till Mr Sharma was removed from his post. Mr Kamal Nanda claimed that the programme was a grand success. He criticised the party MLA from Nadaun, Mr Babu Ram Mandyal, for sidelining grassroots party workers and siding with turncoats. However, Mr Jagdish Verma and Mr Raghunath Singh
Pathania, president and general secretary of the Nadaun mandal BJP, in a fax message to this reporter, claimed that today’s programme had failed to evoke any response as people from outside Nadaun had been brought to take part in it. |
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3 die in school bus mishap Solan, March 31 Those
admitted to the General Hospital in Panchkula were Pinky, Sanyogita
Gupta, her son Varun Gupta, Anju Gupta, her son Manav, Kanwal Saini
and conductor Narain. Three teachers — Shweta Singla, Renuka and
Nikita, along with three children — Munish, Aman and Priya, were
admitted to the PGI, Chandigarh. The school Principal, Ms Rewa Sharma,
the driver, Surinder and his two children escaped with minor injuries |
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Himachal to promote
adventure tourism Manali, March 31 Though the state with its virgin, pristine and unexplored locales have always attracted tourists, it is only now that both the government as well the private sector have realised the immense potential it has for adventure tourism. Himachal Pradesh offers not just excellent skii slopes at Solang and
Kufri, enchanting treks through the mountains, water sports at Pong Dam and aerosports but much more than one could be seeking. The Directorate of Mountaineer-ing and Allied Sports at Manali has not only initiated interested youth from the state into the adventure tourism sector but has also contributed immensely in marketing Himachal as ultimate destination. With snow available around Manali till June, the institute is all prepared for an excellent season as it will be imparting training to over 10,000 students from all over the country in various adventure activities. “Though there has always been stress on resource mobilisation but it is this season that we will be making great strides , as only the fees from 10,000 Central School children, we shall train, will amount to Rs 2.50 crore,” Col H.L. Chauhan said. Guided by the concept of sustainability, we are this year offering requirement-based short-duration adventure courses for all age groups, he added. Apart from the 10,000 students already booked, the Directorate of Mountaineering and Allied Sports with its centres at Dharamsala, Pong Dam in Kangra, Narkanda in Shimla, Jispa in the tribal district of Lahaul Spiti and Bharmaur in Chamba will be providing courses in white water sports like rafting and kayaking, skiing on the higher slopes around Manali and high altitude trekking all over the state. Even the National Defence Academy (NDA) cadets are trained in various army courses here. More than 150 private agencies offering adventure tourism to both foreign as well as domestic tourists around Kulu and Manali have their staff trained by the institute here. A large number of local youth are able to get seasonal employment as trainers, guides, porters, cooks, pharmacists and drivers. “We have excellent foreign trained staff and it was under the exchange programme with the Norwegian Skii Association that our staff went there while some of their men even trained the local youth here,” Major Randhir Saluria, Deputy Director of the institute, said. With Kulu-Manali emerging as an adventure paradise especially for foreigners, some private agencies have ventured into heli-skiing and aero sports. The excellent skii slopes around Manali attracted foreigners in plenty as trained as well as untrained pilots enjoyed the thrill of para gliding. |
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2,868 industrial units set up in HP: minister Chowari (Dalhousie), March 31 Giving this information here today, Mr Kishori Lal, Himachal Minister for Industries, said the setting up of industrial units involving investment of about Rs 300 crore was in the pipeline. This would generate direct or indirect employment to about 15,000 persons in the state. The minister claimed that the industrial development had got a big boost during past four years in the state. He said the industrial policy guidelines envisaged setting up of eco-friendly, employment oriented, income generating and local raw material based industries in the state. The minister said the criteria of 50 per cent employment to Himachalis in these units had been enhanced to 85 per cent in industrially backward areas and 65 in industrially developed areas. He said the tribal areas of the state had been declared tax-free zone for 10 years to encourage setting up of industries in these areas. He said incentives offered to entrepreneurs by the state were the best in the country and procedure for transfer of land was simplified. The minister said to save the entrepreneurs from the inconvenience which they used to face in completing certain formalities in setting up of their units a new concept of ‘escort service’ had been introduced by the government by appointing nodal officers for obtaining all clearances. He said under the state government’s own information technology (IT) policy, all IT units and related services and educational institutions had been given tax holiday up to year 2007. He said a software technology park and high speed data connectivity facilities had been set up in Shimla at a cost of Rs 6 crore and a similar park was proposed to be set up in the Baddi-Barotiwala area. |
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Dhumal opens memorial college Sujanpurtira (Hamirpur), March 31 He said the process for the regularisation of services of teachers was on and would be completed shortly. Professor Dhumal alleged that the Congress was levelling baseless charges against him and his government. He said all parts of the state were getting equal treatment in the matter of development. Meanwhile, addressing students at Sainik School, Sujanpurtira, Mr Dhumal stressed upon the need to inculcate a spirit of discipline and responsiveness among the students. He said Himachal Pradesh was proud of producing great soldiers and the Himachalis had won two of the four Param Vir Chakras in the last Kargil war. He also lauded the achievements made by the students of Sainik School since its inception in 1978. He said it was a matter of pride that hundreds of Sujanians had joined the Army as officers. |
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Panchayats oppose
proposal on bridge Kulu, March 31 The representation said there was already a road on the left bank of the Beas from Banala to Shilagarh (Kharahan) for heavy vehicular traffic. The construction of a bridge at Banala, instead of Bajaura, across the Beas would not only save 14 km up to Shilagarh, the NHPC project site, but would also lighten the burden on the government exchequer by Rs 8 cr. The residents said they, had documentary proofs and assessments showing the cost of the proposed road from Bajaura to Shilagarh was Rs 14.115 cr whereas the road demanded by them would cost only Rs 5.95 cr. They further said the proposed road did not cover the habitated areas whereas the road from Banala would go through Rot, Sachani and many small village. Besides, for the construction of the proposed road, forest land would be used which would violate the Forest Conservation Act, 1980. The representation further said the road from Banala would not only facilitate the villagers but also minimise the transportation cost of agricultural produce. |
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Yuva Morcha leader,
others join Congress Shimla, March 31 The BJPYM leader said he was disenchanted with the BJP because of rampant corruption. Mr Harbhajan Singh said that more BJP activists were expected to joint the Congress over the next few days. He accused the government of misusing the state machinery to win the election. There were large-scale irregularities in the preparation of electoral rolls and names of at lease 7,000 genuine voters had been deleted on political consideration and abut 4000 fake voters added to the list. |
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VHP leader assails
Shanta Kumar Shimla, March 31 Mr Gian Chand
Sanhotra, president of the Parishad, alleged that the BJP lost in the election only because it gave up the issues, particularly the construction of the Ram temple, for which it stood and fought all these
years. He warned the Union Minister not to give such statements against the Parishad and its frontal organisations, failing which he would have to face the wrath of the Hindus. The Parishad condemned the suicidal attack on the Raghunath temple at Jammu and expressed sorrow over the death of securitymen and devotees in the incident. The Parishad criticised the so-called secular political parties for “not condemning” the attack of “Islamic
jehadis” on a Hindu shrine. |
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Cong gears up for civic poll Shimla, March 31 The party has directed its Shimla (Urban) district to gear up for the election and initiate the process of selection of candidates. The aspirants for the party ticket have been asked to submit their applications by April 4 along with a fee of Rs 1000 in case of general category and Rs 500 for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribe. The fee will not be refunded as per the recommendations of the Manmohan Singh Committee. The District Congress Committee will scrutinise the applications by April 6. Mrs Viplove Thakur, General Secretary of the HPCC, said the party would consider the candidature of “able, honest, young and sincere” partymen for the election. |
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Demand for police post at Karian Chamba, March 31 Karian, about 5 km from here, is developing into a small township and has a population of about 6,000, mostly labourers, workers and technicians from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. Besides being the headquarters of the Chamera Hydroelectric Project, business establishments and housing colonies have sprung up from Karian onwards, all of which pose a threat to the security of the residents and the hydel project. Mr Lajpat Singh Jandrotia, president of the association, said a police post at Karian would ensure the maintenance of law and order, besides keeping a watch on the activities of anti-social elements. He said it would also help tackle the problem of sale and consumption of illicit liquor and narcotics in the area. According to Mr Jandrotia, the association had also submitted a memorandum to Mr Shanta Kumar, Union Minister of Consumer Affairs, regarding setting up of a post office at Karian to facilitate the residents here and the adjoining villages, including Bhadiyan Kothi, Mugla, Rajera, Jarangla, Kuranh and
Gudda. |
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Plastic surgery
camp begins Dharamsala, March 31 The Principal of the college, Dr Suman
Rao, inaugurated the camp. Of the over 500 patients who flocked to the OPD today, Dr
K.S. Goleria selected the most urgent cases to be taken up. While the Lions Club is holding the camp, the Red Cross will provide medicines worth Rs 50,000. The camp is being organised in memory of the late Dr Pushpa
Goleria, wife of Dr Goleria. It will continue till April 9. |
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Captain dies in
car mishap Nahan, March 31 Captain Sandhu died on the spot while his friend Bakhshi received multiple injuries and is admitted in the local hospital here. |
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Gen Mehta to
take charge of Western Command Shimla, March 31 General Mehta is an alumnus of the National Defence Academy and was commissioned in the Armoured Corps. During his illustrious career, he has held important operational appointments such as the GOC of an armoured division, General Staff Officer of the Military Operations Directorate at the Army headquarters and the GOC of a strike corps. Prior to taking over as GOC-in-C, he was the Deputy Chief of Army Staff at the Army headquarters. |
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Stokes constitutes scrutiny panel Shimla, March 31 Headed by Mr Kaul Singh, MLA, the committee has as members Mr Chander Kumar, Mr Harbhajan Singh, Mr Sukhvinder Singh and the general secretary in charge of the area. The committee will meet on April 5 and 6 to scrutinise the applications and submit the report to the Pradesh Election Committee by April 7. HP police body meets CM Parwanoo, March 31 The delegation requested the Chief Minister to release a time scale in favour of those officers who had become eligible and to issue necessary directions to the authority concerned. The members also requested the Chief Minister to fill vacant posts of Commandant and home guard by promoting senior HPS officers and to create the posts of Additional SP in the 3 HP Armed Police. The Chief Minister has assured early action regarding these demands. |
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