H I M A C H A L   P R A D E S H

Govt to probe graft cases during Dhumal regime
Shimla, July 2
Mr Kaul Singh, Irrigation and Public Health Minister, today declared that the government would carry out its mandate to eradicate corruption in right earnest and all cases of graft during the Dhumal regime would be probed.

Shimla gets ready for Cong conclave
Shimla, July 2
The city is getting ready for a mega political congregation. The entire Congress leadership will converge on the hill station on July 6 for a three-day "chintan manthan shivir" which will begin on July 7 to work out a broad strategy to recapture power at the Centre.

Internet services go haywire
Hamirpur, July 2
Internet services have gone haywire in Hamirpur district allegedly due to lack of interest shown by the Department of Telecommunications to maintain the services properly. It is difficult to open sites.

Temple conditions to be improved
Nurpur, July 2
The Ram Gopal Temple Managing Committee at its meeting here yesterday decided to improve conditions at the temple. Presided over by the Deputy Commissioner, Kangra, Mr Probodh Saxena, the committee decided to hold meetings thrice in a month to solve temple-related problems.

HC upholds rape convict’s sentence
Shimla, July 2
The Himachal Pradesh High Court yesterday upheld the sentence of Sudhir Kumar, who was involved in committing sodomy and raping an 11-year-old girl.

Farmer under debt ends life
Nahan, July 2
A 60-year-old farmer, Pandit Ramkrishan, allegedly committed suicide by jumping into a pond near Bambyar village under Pacchad police station in Sirmour district last morning. His body was pulled out of the pond by villagers.

Govt to probe graft cases during Dhumal regime
Tribune News Service

Shimla, July 2
Mr Kaul Singh, Irrigation and Public Health Minister, today declared that the government would carry out its mandate to eradicate corruption in right earnest and all cases of graft during the Dhumal regime would be probed.

Participating in the debate on the general Budget for 2003-04 in the Vidhan Sabha today, he said the Dhumal regime did the biggest disservice to the hill people by bringing in the culture of corruption from the adjoining plains of Punjab. He said the “party with a difference” was steeped in corruption right from top to the lowest level as was evident from Tehelka tapes which caught the party’s national President, Mr Bangaru Laxman, taking a bribe from an arms dealer. His successor, Mr Venkaiah Naidu, had been but in the dock for committing various irregularities as the Rural Development Minister by his party men.

The party had left a trail of corruption and misgovernance, which had shaken the confidence of the people in the system. The Congress had submitted a charge sheet against the Dhumal government while being in Opposition. It would now probe all these allegations and bring the guilty to book. However, there would be no victimisation and the honest and innocent would have nothing to fear.

He took the BJP members to task for quoting wrong figures of economic growth and per capita income of the state and said that the fact was that both figures had declined during the Dhumal regime. The average economic growth during 1994-98 was 7.3 per cent, which steadily declined and came down to 4.5 per cent in 2002-03.

Mr Kaul Singh criticised the BJP-HVC government for showering undue favours on J.P. Industries, which was awarded the 1000 MW Karcham-Wangtu project despite its dismal track record in providing jobs to Himachalis. Not only this, the government signed a power purchase agreement (PPA) for the 300 MW Baspa project with a company under which the state electricity board would purchase power at Rs 3.36 per unit and sell it at Rs 2.05 per unit to incur huge losses.

He also accused the Dhumal government of discriminating against certain areas in the matter of development. Citing an example, he said 21 senior secondary schools were opened in Hamirpur district, which had only five Assembly segments, as against 12 in Mandi, which had double the population.

Shimla gets ready for Cong conclave
Rakesh Lohumi
Tribune News Service

Shimla, July 2
The city is getting ready for a mega political congregation. The entire Congress leadership will converge on the hill station on July 6 for a three-day "chintan manthan shivir" which will begin on July 7 to work out a broad strategy to recapture power at the Centre.

It is for the second time in the history of Independent India that the Congress has chosen the queen of the hills for a brainstorming session. The Capital hosted the plenary session of the All-India Congress Committee in 1971 at the Annandale Grounds.

It had turned out to be quite an event as Young Turks took up the courage to challenge the might of Mrs Indira Gandhi and Mr Chandra Shekhar got elected to the Central Parliamentary Board the then highest decision-making body of the party, against her wishes.

Christened as Panchmarhi-II, the conclave of the party is going to be much more important as the leadership will prepare the action plan for the assembly poll in five states and the general election next year.

The venue is the historic Peterhof complex, which served as the residence of Viceroys from 1982 to 1988 until the new Viceregal Lodge was built on the adjoining observatory hill. Though the structure where the trial of Nathu Ram Godse, the assassin of Mahatma Gandhi was held in-camera, was destroyed in a fire in 1981, the reconstructed building has again been named as Peterhof. It has a spacious Darbar Hall, besides several committee rooms and sprawling lawns which make it ideal for holding such events. Initially the building was constructed to house Raj Bhavan but during the course of construction it was converted into a hotel and named Meghdoot by the then Shanta Kumar Government. During President's rule in 1993 the then Governor Gulsher Ahmed shifted Raj Bhavan to the complex. However, after his unceremonious exit the new Governor Surender Nath, opted for the old Raj Bhavan at Barne's Court. Subsequently, the Virbhadra Singh Government finally decided to make it a state guest house with a major portion handed over to the Himachal Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation for running a commercial hotel.

Hectic preparations are on for the conclave and not only the Peterhof complex but also the entire city is being given a facelift. Railings and even electric polls are being painted afresh and all important roads are being repaired. The metalling of the Annandale helipad road is being carried out on a war-footing. The Peterhof complex has been closed for renovation.

In all about 278 delegates are expected to attend the "shivir" but the total number of visitors will be more. All big hotels have been booked. Mrs Sonia Gandhi, Congress President, will stay at Oakover, the official residence of the Chief Minister.

Internet services go haywire
Our Correspondent

Hamirpur, July 2
Internet services have gone haywire in Hamirpur district allegedly due to lack of interest shown by the Department of Telecommunications to maintain the services properly. It is difficult to open sites.

The worst affected are those who surf various sites daily for getting jobs. Scores of students who visit Internet cafes for surfing return disappointed as they are not able to open sites.

A spokesman for the Department of Telecommunications said there was no fault with the Internet services at their end. However, he failed to tell why the sites were not opening.

Insiders in the department say that whenever any change is made or any new programme is loaded on to the local exchange, Internet services suffer. According to the sources, lack of highly skilled persons to deal with the introduction of new programmes leads to the problem.

Temple conditions to be improved
Our Correspondent

Nurpur, July 2
The Ram Gopal Temple Managing Committee at its meeting here yesterday decided to improve conditions at the temple. Presided over by the Deputy Commissioner, Kangra, Mr Probodh Saxena, the committee decided to hold meetings thrice in a month to solve temple-related problems. Subcommittees were also formed for this purpose. According to Dr N.K. Lath, SDM-cum-Assistant Commissioner, Ram Gopal Temple, Damtal, the government had won three court cases pertaining to encroachments on 1600 kanals. He informed that 70 files relating to encroachments were pending in revenue courts of Nurpur subdivision.

HC upholds rape convict’s sentence
Our Correspondent

Shimla, July 2
The Himachal Pradesh High Court yesterday upheld the sentence of Sudhir Kumar, who was involved in committing sodomy and raping an 11-year-old girl.

A trial court had found the accused guilty and had sentenced him to undergo 10 years’ rigorous imprisonment and had imposed a fine of Rs 5000 for rape under Section 376 of the IPC and seven years’ RI and a Rs 2000 fine for sodomy.

The trial court directed that both sentences would run concurrently.

According to the prosecution, on November 3, 1999, when the prosecutrix was on the way to her school, the accused intercepted her at New Ghati in Kandaghat tehsil. He requested her to help him lift a load of pine needles. The victim acceded to his request and later he raped her in a jungle.

The District and Sessions Judge, Solan, found the accused guilty of rape and sodomy and sentenced him.

A Division Bench comprising Mr Justice R.L. Khurana and Mr Justice M.R. Verma, while upholding the order of the trial court, observed that the statement of the victim was clear, cogent and specific, which was also corroborated by medical evidence. The trial court order, therefore, warranted no interference.

Farmer under debt ends life
Our Correspondent

Nahan, July 2
A 60-year-old farmer, Pandit Ramkrishan, allegedly committed suicide by jumping into a pond near Bambyar village under Pacchad police station in Sirmour district last morning. His body was pulled out of the pond by villagers.

According to police sources, Ramkrishan had taken a loan of Rs 50,000 from Nahan Rural and Agriculture Cooperative Bank. Recently, bank officials had given him a notice to repay the loan or face legal action including the attachment of his agriculture land.