H I M A C H A L   P R A D E S H

Cong slams govt on bus mishap
Kulu, September 11
“The attitude of the Himachal Government is totally callous” towards relief to victims of bus mishap in the Manikaran-Barsheni road. This was stated by Mr Virbhadra Singh, former Chief Minister and leader of the Congress Legislative Party, at a press conference here last evening.

Cong-Left combine sweeps HPU poll
Shimla, September 11
The ruling BJP suffered another setback in the Himachal Pradesh University election today when the panel supported by the party was routed by the Congress-Left combine in the election of the university teachers union.

Moves afoot to reopen NIT
Hamirpur, September 11
The National Institute of Technology here closed after August 25 incident of violence may open shortly. Dr S.K. Bhowmick, Acting Director of the Institute left for New Delhi yesterday morning to hold talks with the senior officers of the Union HRD Ministry and the new Chairman of the Board of government of the Institute Mr L.M. Thapar.

Another mite hits apple crop
Shimla, September 11
While apple growers of the state are still grappling with the attack of European red mite, which has affected 60 per cent of the orchards in Shimla and Kulu districts, another strain of pathogen — two-spotted mite — has hit apple crop.

Manimahesh yatra resumes
Chamba, September 11
The Manimahesh pilgrimage resumed today after the pedestrian path from Hadsar to Manimahesh was cleared of snow which got blocked in a blizzard on September 8.

Two shepherds stranded due to snow
Shimla, September 11
Two shepherds along with their flock of 200 goats and sheep, have been stranded in high altitude area in Gurang Kanda in tribal Kinnaur district, 300 km from here, due to heavy snowfall during the past four days, official reports said here.

Cong slams govt on bus mishap
Our Correspondent

Kulu, September 11
“The attitude of the Himachal Government is totally callous” towards relief to victims of bus mishap in the Manikaran-Barsheni road.

This was stated by Mr Virbhadra Singh, former Chief Minister and leader of the Congress Legislative Party, at a press conference here last evening.

Mr Virbhadra Singh said it was his duty to convey the feelings of the affected villagers to the public through media that the government remained indifferent towards their grief. He said the purpose of his visit was to express his condolences to the bereaved families of the victims.

Earlier, he visited accident site, the local Hospital and villages of Bhutti and Barai. He said people wanted that the bus be retrieved as they felt that some bodies might be there in the vehicle. Mr Virbhadra Singh sought that divers from the Navy should be called to search the bodies before it was too late.

He said the people were annoyed with the government and the district administration. They told him that as there were no clothes villagers had to carry naked bodies of women. Only one stretcher was provided.

He said the administration could not even provide any vehicle to transport the bodies. He said more than 100 residents of Bhatti village had been visiting the site everyday by arranging taxis on their own.

Mr Virbhadra Singh said trained persons from a disaster management cell should be deployed to retrieve bodies.

The owner of the ill-fated private bus did not have the courtesy to visit the bereaved families and was being sheltered by BJP leaders here, former Chief Minister alleged. He appreciated the efforts being done by the authorities of the Parvati Project to search missing passengers.

Raj Krishan Gaur, a former minister and senior Congress leader, said he would provide a bus from today to transport villagers to the site.

Drivers of private buses should be given periodical refresher training and the test of the public transport drivers should be very strict, Mr Virbhadra Singh added. A magisterial inquiry should be ordered into the accident, he added.

Cong-Left combine sweeps HPU poll
Tribune News Service

Shimla, September 11
The ruling BJP suffered another setback in the Himachal Pradesh University election today when the panel supported by the party was routed by the Congress-Left combine in the election of the university teachers union.

The combine won all five posts with huge margin. The extent to which they dominated the election could be seen from the fact that the BJP failed to put up candidates for the executive committee. All 10 candidates of the combine were returned unopposed.

Dr R.S. Chauhan, the newly elected president of the association, said the landslide win of the combine was a mandate of the academicians against blatant favouritism and corruption in recruitment in the university and “saffronisation” of higher education.

Dr Chauhan polled 156 votes against 71 secured by Dr Shashikant Ramesh of the BJP- supported panel. Dr Kishori Lal (Cong-Left) was elected vice-president defeating Dr Ramesh Mishra by 72 votes, Dr Bhupinder Singh defeated Dr Surinder Sharma by 93 votes in the contest for the post, general secretary, while Dr Vijay Kaushal was elected joint secretary defeating Dr Prakash Chandel by 51 votes.

Moves afoot to reopen NIT
Our Correspondent

Hamirpur, September 11
The National Institute of Technology here closed after August 25 incident of violence may open shortly. Dr S.K. Bhowmick, Acting Director of the Institute left for New Delhi yesterday morning to hold talks with the senior officers of the Union HRD Ministry and the new Chairman of the Board of government of the Institute Mr L.M. Thapar.

During his five-day stint at Hamirpur after returning from New Delhi, Dr Bhowmick had talks with teachers of the Institute. However, teachers were adamant, demanding re-instatement of Mr P.K. Sood, Chief Warden of the Institute. The teachers told Dr Bhowmick that Mr Sood had been awarded punishment twice — removal from the post of Chief Warden and suspension. Under the rules, a person cannot be punished twice.

There are reports that HRD officers had talked to Mr L.M. Thapar, and briefed him on all issues them. Only then Mr Thapar decided to summon Dr Bhowmick to New Delhi. Reopening of the institute and appointment of new Director of the Institution may also figure in talks as Dr Bhowmick has decided to step down. He was appointed to this post being the senior most teacher of the Institute.

While talks at the highest level are on, teachers have been continuing the agitation by wearing black badges and striking work.

Another mite hits apple crop
Our Correspondent

Shimla, September 11
While apple growers of the state are still grappling with the attack of European red mite, which has affected 60 per cent of the orchards in Shimla and Kulu districts, another strain of pathogen — two-spotted mite — has hit apple crop.

The two-spotted mite is resistant to pesticides and has a strong resurgence. Scientists of the Mashobra-based horticulture research centre say the multiplication process in this strain is rapid in comparison to the much-publicised European red mite.

Horticulture scientists say the two-spotted mite is spreading with alarming proportions in the apple belt of Kotkhai, Rohru and Ani.

Manimahesh yatra resumes
Our Correspondent

Chamba, September 11
The Manimahesh pilgrimage resumed today after the pedestrian path from Hadsar to Manimahesh was cleared of snow which got blocked in a blizzard on September 8.

Giving this information here today, Mr Rahul Anand, Deputy Commissioner said with the restoration of about 13 km-long pedestrian path, a large number of pilgrims had started making a beeline for the Manimahesh yatra.

He said the pilgrimage would conclude on Radhashtmi on September 14.

Two shepherds stranded due to snow

Shimla, September 11
Two shepherds along with their flock of 200 goats and sheep, have been stranded in high altitude area in Gurang Kanda in tribal Kinnaur district, 300 km from here, due to heavy snowfall during the past four days, official reports said here.

The shepherds, identified as Dharampal and Parampal, had gone to the alpine area a few days ago were not able to return due to heavy snowfall.

The Deputy Commissioner, Kinnaur, requested the Indo-Tibet Border Police to send its teams to rescue the shepherds and their flock in rescue operations. PTI