 |
Tuesday,
February 11, 2003, Chandigarh, India  
|
Cong to
probe charges against Dhumal Govt Cong lying
in ads: state BJP chief BJP
committed to soldiers’ welfare |
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
DISTRICT ROUNDUP KANGRA DISTRICT ROUNDUP
SHIMLA DISTRICT ROUNDUP
HAMIRPUR CBI to
probe Agro-Packaging India deal GPIL initiatives China
‘violating’ human rights in Tibet 3 die in
mishaps Martyr
cremated
|
|
Cong to probe charges against Dhumal Govt Shimla, February 10 Releasing the party's election manifesto here today, Mrs Mohsina Kidwai, general secretary of the AICC said corruption was a major issue and the Congress would do all that was required to expose it and provide a clean administration. It would spare no effort to rid the state of the menace of nepotism, graft and immorality, which was eating into the vitals of the instruments of governance. Efforts would be made to restore the confidence of the people in the HP Subordinate Services Selection Board by exposing the alleged nexus between the ruling BJP and the board and ensuring deterrent punishment to the guilty. The party would review the MoUs for hydel power projects not only from the point of view of the state's economic interests but also the corruption angle. The scores of MoUs signed by the Dhumal Government were nothing short of a scandal. The party would also see to it that the cement industry in the state did not come up at the cost of ecology as it wanted to promote tourism in a big way. She said the party would put the BJP in the dock for raising indiscriminate loans, particularly as it was opposed to the very concept of raising loans while in the opposition. It owed an explanation to the people as the debt burden had increased from Rs 5000 crore to Rs 15,000 crore over the past five years. The manifesto contains many populist promises like job to at least one member from the below poverty line (BPL) families, raising the minimum daily wage to Rs 75 and regularisation of the services of all those workers who have completed seven years of service, reorganisation of districts, development of Dharamsala as the winter capital, revival of the development fund for assembly constituencies, construction of shelters and rehabilitation centres for the poor in each district, provide 10,000 houses for the houseless every year and link panchayats with main roads within five years. Other important promises include the setting up of a technical university for providing education to the nursing and paramedical staff, regularisation of ad hoc teachers with five years of service, pursue the case for setting up a big public sector undertaking in the state in the Central sector, approach the centre for granting tribal status to backward areas like the Chauhar valley in Mandi, Chhota Bada Bhangal in Kangra, Dodra Kawar in Shimla and Giripar in Sirmaur. The administration would be decentralised and a "sarkar aap ki dwar" scheme launched to bring government at the doorstep of the people. The devolution of financial and administrative powers to the panchayats would be completed within 12 months and an administrative reforms tribunal would be set up to bring efficiency in government functioning. The manifesto also assures honourable living to the dependents of war heroes, and make the State Exservicemen Welfare Corporation and the State Sainik Board self-reliant. Mr Satyajit Gaikwad, secretary of the AICC, Mr Anand Sharma, national spokesperson, Mrs Vidya Stokes, PCC chief, and Mr Virbhadra Singh, a former Chief Minister, was among those present on the occasion. |
|
Cong lying in ads: state
BJP chief Santokhgarh (Una), February 10 The Congress was making irresponsible statements and this mud-slinging would lead to its downfall, Mr Sharma claimed while defending the BJP saying “ we had issued only retaliatory advertisements, but the Congress started it all. Mr Sharma, who met The Tribune at Santokhgarh during a pre-election meeting, said the allegations levelled against the BJP were baseless. Giving examples, he said the Congress in its advertisements had claimed that no work had started on the Antodaya scheme and Gaddis and Gujjars had not been given the status of backward class. “All this is wrong. The Antodaya scheme, to provide food grains to the poorest of the poor, had started in the state while the status of OBCs had been given to Gaddis and Gujjars,” Mr Sharma claimed. Similarly, he pointed out, the Congress had claimed that pension scheme for the aged and the work of channelising the Swan river had not started, but both these claims were wrong. |
|
BJP committed to soldiers’ welfare Shimla, February 10 Addressing a press conference here today, he said the honour and financial assistance the Dhumal Government provided to the Kargil martyrs proved beyond doubt that it was the party which was seriously concerned about the welfare of soldiers and their families. The dependents of each of 52 martyrs from the state was given Rs 5 lakh, whereas those with more than 50 per cent disability were given Rs 2.50 lakh each and in the case of less than 50 per cent disability, the assistance given was Rs 1 lakh each. Further, 37 dependents had been given government jobs and in the case of the remaining 15 an assurance had been given that jobs would be provided as soon as the dependents completed their education. Not only that the wards of the martyrs were being given free education upto the graduation level. As many as 1,234 ex-servicemen had been given class III government jobs and another 78 class IV jobs. Similarly, 26 dependents of exservicemen had been given class III jobs and three class IV jobs. The needs of the farming community had been taken care of by providing the irrigation facility for an additional 6,000 hectares of land and connecting 240 villages by roads. In the science and technology sector, an international institute of information and technology, with the status of a deemed university, had been set up at Vaknaghat and several medical and engineering colleges had been set up in the private sector. He said all these achievements would enable the party to win the Assembly elections for which the party would formally launch its election campaign by holding 18 big rallies across the state on February 12. |
|
DISTRICT
ROUNDUP KANGRA Kangra Be it the Congress stalwart and former HPCC chief, Mr Sat Mahajan, or a new face the BJP candidate from Pragpur, Ms Anita Sandal, a large number of rebels will play spoilsport for the official nominees. Both the parties have more than twelve rebel candidates, who could make a dent into the vote bank of the official candidates. The Congress, which could manage to retain hold on only four of the total 16 Assembly segments in Kangra during the 1998 Assembly elections, is hoping to change its fortunes this time around. Apart from the anti-incumbency factor, it is trying to encash on the contentious issue of regional discrimination with Kangra in development works by the Dhumal regime. During the previous elections in 1993, the Congress had virtually swept the poll by bagging 12 seats in Kangra. The BJP, on the other hand, is trying to maintain its tally, as it had won 12 seats in Kangra, considered to be a BJP citadel, during the last elections. With Kangra being the stronghold of the Union Minister, Mr Shanta Kumar, the BJP is hoping to retain its hold. During the 1993 elections, it was the BJP which had to face the disenchantment of the electorate as it could register victory in merely three seats in Kangra. Political fortunes of many bigwigs like a former HPCC chief, Mr Sat Mahajan, the district BJP chief, Mr Dulo Ram, former ministers like Mr Vijai Mankotia, Mr Chander Kumar, Mr Kishan Kapoor and Mr Ramesh Chaudhary would be put to test in Kangra. Having denied the party ticket to two of its sitting legislators, Chaudhary Vidyasagar, former Agriculture Minister from Kangra, and Ms Nirmala Devi from Pragpur, the party is faced with a challenge from the rebels. Making headlines for resigning from the Dhumal government on the issue of not granting 27 per cent reservation in jobs to the OBC’s Mr Vidyasagar is making his presence felt in a big way as an Independent candidate. Pitted against him is the Zila Parishad Chairman, Mr Jagdamba Prasad. Peeved on being denied the ticket, Ms Nirmala Devi has got back at the party with her son, Mr Naveen Dhiman, in the fray as an Independent. With a large section of the block BJP throwing their might behind him, he is giving anxious moments to the BJP candidate. Rebels like Mr Harnam Singh Dadwal in Nurpur, Mr Kamal Padha in Shahpur, Mr Ashok Kumar in Ganggath could damage the party. The problem of the rebels in the Congress is even worse as the All-India Mahila Congress president, Ms Chandresh Kumari, poll prospects could be affected by the presence of Mr Ram Swaroop, who was the party candidate in 1998 and is now trying his luck as the HVC candidate. A former MLA, Mr Daulat Chaudhary from Kangra, too has thrown in his hat in the ring as he is contesting on the HVC ticket as the party chose to field Mr Surender Kaku, a lightweight. Possibility of the rebel candidates like the district Sewa Dal chief in Rajgir, Mr Pritam Chand, Mr Yog Ram in Pragpur, Mr Sanjay Rattan and Mr Gulzar in Jwalamukhi and Mr Balwant Rana in Thural, cutting into the party vote bank are pretty high. Interestingly, both the BJP as well as the Congress are not untouched by bitter factionalism in the party as the vertical split has gone down right to the grass-roots level in the form of Shanta and Dhumal camps and Virbhadra and Stokes group. |
|
DISTRICT
ROUNDUP SHIMLA Kotkhai (Shimla) While Mr Rohit Thakur, a grandson of Thakur Ram Lal, has entered the fray from Jubbal -Kotkhai to cash in on the legacy of his grandfather, Mrs Vidya Stokes, the Himachal Pradesh Congress Committee chief, has shifted from her traditional Theog seat to Kumarsain to fill the void created by the demise of J.B.L. Khachi. In fact, it will be a “homecoming “ for Mrs Stokes, who hails from Kotgarh, but had been contesting from Theog, a constituency which she represented for five terms. The absence of Thakur Ram Lal has also emboldened Mr Narinder Bragta, Horticulture Minister, to shift to Jubbal-Kotkhai from Shimla, the seat he represented in the dissolved House. The Congress has brought in a young new face, Mr Rajinder Verma, to replace Mrs Stokes from the Theog constituency. Barring 1977 and 1990, when a strong anti-Congress wave swept the state, the BJP never did well in the district. The Congress has been able to maintain its hold despite its virtual wipeout by the Janata wave, largely because all its Chief Ministers since 1980 came from the region. While Thakur Ram Lal occupied the coveted office from February, 1980, to April 1983,Mr Virbhadra Singh completed 11 years in three terms. With both Mr Virbhadra Singh and Mrs Stokes in race for the top post, it is obvious that the chief ministership will remain in the district if the Congress comes to power. This is a big factor, which tilts the electoral scales in favour of the party. On the other hand, the BJP has all these years failed to throw up a leader to match their stature, ever since Daulat Ram Chauhan, who won from the Shimla seat four consecutive times, passed away. The party has, over the past five years, made a constant effort to penetrate into the Congress citadel by speeding up development works, particularly the construction of roads, and making an earnest effort to improve the economy of the fruit growers. The outcome of the elections will provide an indication on how far the party had succeeded in its endeavour. The BJP has been putting up only a token fight in Rohru, Jubbal-Kotkhai, and Rampur, from where its candidates have not won an election since 1977. The Jubbal-Kotkhai constituency remained a pocket borough of Thakur Ram Lal, who had a record of winning the seat nine times. This time, the situation has changed, with his grandson, Mr Rohit Thakur, locked in a triangular contest involving Mr Bragta (BJP) and Mr Rajpal Chauhan
(HVC). The two Independent candidates in the field are non-entities in the contest. While Mr Thakur is largely banking on the goodwill of his grandfather, Mr Bragta is seeking votes on the basis of all that he did for the area as minister, though he represented the Shimla constituency. Mr Rajpal Chauhan is also taking credit for the development works carried out by the BJP-HVC coalition, particularly, those for which the lone HVC MP, Dr Dhani Ram Shandil, had granted funds under the local area development scheme. A positive factor for the Congress is that the factional fight will not affect the party in the constituency as both Mr Virbhadra Singh and Mrs Stokes are supporting Mr Thakur. Since both Mr Bragta and Mr Rajpal belong to the Kotkhai area, the division of votes will benefit Mr Thakur who hails from the Jubbal area. Unlike previous elections, it will be a keen contest. Mr Virbhadra Singh is sitting pretty in Rohru, a part of his erstwhile Rampur Bushair state, though his traditional BJP, rival Mr Khushi Ram Balnatah, hopes to put up a better show this time. The Dhumal government’s promise to carve out a new district of Rohru from the Shimla district, he feels, will enable the party to make a dent in Mr Virbhadra Singh’s votebank. The voters of Rohru are all set to oblige him, particularly as the constituency is likely to be reserved after the ongoing delimitation. However, the vote share of Mr Balnatah may improve. In Rampur (reserved), seat it is again Mr Virbhadra Singh’s influence which will see the Congress candidate, Mr Singhi Ram, through in the four-cornered contest involving Mr Brij Lal (BJP), Mr Gurdial (CPM) and Mr Baseri Lal (Independent). Mr Singhi Ram has been winning from the seat since 1982. In Theog, Mr Rakesh Verma, who quit the BJP to contest as an Independent, is far ahead of his rivals, Mr Gian Singh Chandel (BJP) and Mr Rajinder Verma (Congress) in campaigning. He has been bracing up for an intense electoral battle with Mrs Stokes for the past over one year and her absence has taken off much of the steam from electioneering. The candidates of the two main parties, who entered the fray late, are still in the process of putting their act together. Mrs Stokes will have to contend with a Congress rebel, Mr Pramod Sharma, besides Mr Sandeepany Bhardwaj (BJP) and Mr Bhagat Ram Chauhan (HVC) in the Kuamrsain constituency. A staunch Virbhadra Singh loyalist Mr Sharma was expelled from the party only a couple of days ago after he opposed the candidature of the PCC chief from the seat. However, the poll managers of Mrs Stokes are not unduly worried over his presence in the fray and are confident that her stature will enable her to reach the winning post without much fuss. Already, some old BJP leaders like Mr Gopal Das
Bhaget, who contested the seat as a Jan Sangh candidate in 1967, have joined the Congress to support Mrs Stokes. In Chopal, the presence of three potential Independents, Mr Arun Bhandari, Dr Susbhash and Mr Pratap Powar, besides Mr Yoginder Chand (Congress), a member of the dissolved house, and Mr Sanjay Shastri (BJP), has made the contest multi-cornered. Three candidates, Mr Anant Ram (NCP), Mr Dalbir Singh (Samajwadi Party) and Mr Mangat Ram (Janata Dal), are not likely to cut much ice with the electorate. It will be a matter of prestige for Mr Virbhadra Singh to ensure the victory of the Congress candidate, for whom he managed the party ticket despite adverse feedback from the workers. The state capital is again witnessing a triangular contest involving the BJP, the Congresss and the
CPM. While Mr Harbhajan Singh, who lost to Mr Bragta in the last elections, is again in the fray as the Congress candidate, the BJP has brought in a new face in Mr Ganesh Dut. Mr Sanjay Chauhan, a youth leader, is making his electoral debut as CPM candidate. The seat has been never returned a candidate twice since BJP stalwart Daulat Ram Chauhan, who won it four time in succession since 1967, left the scene. In the Kusumpati (reserved) seat, the sitting BJP legislator, Mr R.D. Kashyap, is facing Mr Chiranji Lal (Congress), Mr Tarsem Bharati (HVC) and Mr Sohan Lal, a Congress rebel. The factional war between the rival camps headed by Mr Virbhadra Singh and Mrs Stokes could mar the prospects of the Congress candidates in the Shimla and Kusumpati
seats. The BJP won only these two seats in the district in the last elections. |
|
DISTRICT
ROUNDUP HAMIRPUR Hamirpur In the Chief Minister's Bamsan constituency, for example, against 26,787 male voters, the number of women voters is 30,786. In Mewa (SC), against 32,696 women electors, there are only 28,981 male voters. In Nadaunta, there are 30,231 men and 33,811 women voters. The narrowest margin is in Hamirpur town where against 31,465 male voters, there are 32,644 female voters. In the 1998 elections, it was this district which not only returned Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal but also gave the BJP a landslide win by returning all its five
candidates. In fact, Hamirpur has been a traditional stronghold of the BJP. In the 1993 elections, with the exception of Nadaun, BJP candidates had won the remaining four seats. In 1998, when the Congress got a massive mandate in the state, the BJP won two seats here and one went to an Independent. Another unique feature of Hamirpur has been Mr Ishwar Dass Dhiman, Education Minister in the present BJP government. He is seeking fourth consecutive election to the state Assembly from the Mewa Assembly constituency, which is a reserve constituency. This time, the BJP has fielded all five sitting MLAs, Mr Prem Kumar Dhumal, Mr Baldev Sharma, Mr Ishwar Dass Dhiman, Ms Urmil Thakur and Mr Babu Ram Mandyal, to defend their seats. For residents of Hamirpur in general and BJP followers in particular, the election of Mr Prem Kumar Dhumal as the leader of the BJP Legislature Party and his subsequent taking over as the Chief Minister of the state marked a golden-letter day for never before any one from this part of the state had risen to the level. Hamirpur became a district in 1972. Though a small town, it now boasts of an NIT and a good educational and sports centre. With a total population of around 25,000, it has witnessed an allround development in the past 30 years in general and five years in particular. Roads, bridges, culverts and drinking water supply have improved considerably. This time 28 candidates are in the fray for five seats. The following is the list of candidates: Nadaun — Mr Babu Ram Mandyal (BJP), Mr Sukhwinder S. Sukhu (Congress), Kavishka Kaushal (HVC), Virendra Kumar (Lok Jan Shakti), Prabhat Chaudhary, Prithi Chand and Raghubir Singh (Independents); Nadaunta — Baldev Sharma (BJP), Vidya Dar (Congress), Manjeet S. Dogra, Rattan Singh, Tulsi Ram and Vinod Kumar (Independents); Mewa (SC) — Suresh Kumar (Congress), Ishwar Dass Dhiman (BJP), Ishwari Devi (HVC), Praveen Kumar (NC), Dhani Ram Shukla (BSP) and Amin Chand (Independent); Hamirpur — Anita Verma (Congress), Urmil Thakur (BJP), Sita Ram (HVC), Narendra Thakur and Naresh Kumar (Independents); Bamsan — Prem Kumar Dhumal (BJP), Kuldip S. Pathania (Congress), Gopi Chand (BSP) and Pyar Chand (Independent). The district has 414 polling stations of which 82 are in Nadaun, 86 in Hamirpur, 80 in Bamsan, 77 in Mewa (SC) and 89 in Nadaunta. |
|
5 women in fray in Hamirpur
Dhumal woos party cadre
Yuva Morcha burns Amarinder’s effigy |
|
CBI to probe
Agro-Packaging India deal Shimla, February 10 The department has, during investigation of a case concerning various financial irregularities in the public sector undertaking, found that unauthorised and inadmissible commissions worth lakhs of rupees had been paid to agents by the then Managing Director of the company, Mr B.S.
Thind, and one such agency was Al Ghawi General Trading of the UAE. The CBI has been urged to find out whether or not the firm had sent an order for the supply of 1,50,000 corrugated boxes, worth Rs 1.8 crore, to the company through a fax on December 8, 1997. The department doubts that any such supply order was actually placed with the company and that the fax might not be genuine. The department has registered a case under Sections 406, 420, 468, 471 and 120-B of the IPC and Section 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act against Mr Thind and Mr Rajiv
Goel, who was paid the commission. |
|
GPIL initiatives Nalagarh, February 10 Located at Nalagarh, Himachal Pradesh, in the foothills of the Himalayas, GPIL is one of the most modern and single largest spinning units, comprising of 84,672 spindles plus 960 Open End Rotors installed with an investment of Rs. 550 crores to produce different types of premium quality yarns such as 100 per cent cotton combed, polyester / cotton combed blended and 100 per cent polyester yarns. The textile division GPIL headed by Mr. S. K. Ghosh, Executive Director, the unit in the last two years adopted several innovative HRD and Management initiatives to bring about an improvement in the skills of the workers and officers, resulting in boosting the unit’s overall performance. There is complete computerization in the unit. Besides, there is online working of total operations from raw material issue to manufacturing and dispatches. All reports of the unit are generated online. Infact, for the 170 staff there are as many as 175 computers. The CRM Project was launched in association with the NIS Sparta, a wing of the NIIT, New Delhi, to increase customer responsiveness of the company. The company is now imparting this training to all the employees to improve performance. |
|
China ‘violating’ human rights in Tibet Dharamsala, February 10 Releasing a report of human rights violations in Tibet in 2002, TCHRD said today that there were 208 political prisoners in Tibetan jails and alleged that secret trials were held in many cases and harsh and extreme sentences imposed. The report says that recent decline in political and religious activists was the result of heightened surveillance and brutal suppression by the authorities. Anti Dalai Lama campaign was heightened during the year under report and restrictions were imposed on observance of traditional religious practices and beliefs. The authorities have imposed Internet censorship. |
|
3 die in mishaps Shimla, February 10 One person was killed when a bus of the state road transport corporation fell into a khad near Shaneti village, about 12 km from Rampur. There were seven persons on board when the mishap occurred. The deceased has been identified as Shashikant. The six injured were admitted to the Mahatma Gandhi Hospital. Another accident occurred at Talai on the Rampur-Shimla road when a utility jeep rolled down a gorge killing Manoj and Suraj Devi. |
|
Martyr
cremated Bilaspur, February 10 Joginder Singh Rana died fighting terrorists in the Rajouri sector in J and K two days ago when four terrorists suddenly ambushed his party. Rana succeeded in killing three terrorists while the fourth hidden terrorist managed to fire at him. Rana leaves behind his wife and a one-year-old daughter. |
 |
| Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir | Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs | Nation | Editorial | | Business | Sport | World | Mailbag | In Spotlight | Chandigarh Tribune | Ludhiana Tribune 50 years of Independence | Tercentenary Celebrations | | 123 Years of Trust | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | Suggestion | E-mail | |
Mr
Sunil Shastri, spokesperson of the BJP, claimed today that his party had
during its five-year rule implemented the slogan of “Jai jawan, jai
kisan and jai vigyan” in letter and in spirit as a result of which the
people of the state would repose their faith in the party during the Assembly poll.
