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INTUC
chief arrested, let off 3 file papers for dist BJP post Mystic Bhalkoo’s services recognised
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CM gives 25 lakh to Sainik School
Man shoots neighbour
Monkeys fight over Babu Ram’s place Need to widen bridges A town
plagued by industrial pollution Pay compensation, insurance firm told BSNL Net users face problems Staff shortage plagues sanatorium
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INTUC chief
arrested, let off Solan, November 2 The police armed with a arrest warrant procured from the CJM, Panchkula, surrounded the rest house and tried to arrest him forcibly. Mr Bawa tried to run away to avoid arrest. It was learnt that the DSP Pinjore fired some shots in to the air to disperse the crowd that had gathered in his support. The Haryana police also resorted to a mild lathicharge. The Haryana police managed to arrest him but it was intercepted near Baddi after a Bawa supporter informed the local police of his forcible arrest. His supporters gathered near the police post at Baddi and managed to get him freed. The
SP, Solan, Mr Abhishek Trivedi, who had rushed to Baddi said the
police should have informed the local police before coming to arrest
Mr Bawa. He said they were verifying the facts of the matter from the
Panchkula Police.
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3 file papers for dist BJP post Kangra, November 2 Mr Suresh Bhardwaj, MP, Rajya Sabha, and the returning officer for the poll, said today that three candidates filed their nomination papers, which included Mr Ramesh Chand Dhuwala, former Irrigation and Public Health Minister, Dr Rajan Shushant, former Revenue Minister and Mr Vipin Parmar, for the post of party district president for the district. He said that if required the polls will be held at 10.30 a.m. tomorrow here. Mr Bhardwaj said that 35 nomination papers were filed for the 16 posts of the state council members (delegates). Mr Bhardwaj said he was making efforts to find a consensus candidate for the post of president. He said that Kangra was the base of the Himachal Pradesh politics and the BJP leaders of this district had the potential to sort out issues on the national and state level and to sort out party poll issue was not difficult for them. But Mr Bhardwaj, confessed that what ever was happening was not in the party interests. He blamed the party leadership in the Kangra district for not making efforts to avoid polls for the district president post. Dr Rajan Sushant, one of the presidential candidates, was accompanied by Mr Ravinder Ravi, MLA, Ms Sarween Choudary, Rakesh Pathania, former MLAs, Mr Kripal Parmar MP Rajya Sabha and Mr Omkar Thakur, former OSD to the Chief Minister. Dr Sushant said that he will not withdraw his name from the poll fray. Mr Ramesh Dhuwala was accompanied by Mr Dulo Ram, former district BJP chief, Capt Atma Ram, Mr Des Raj, Parveen Sharma, R.C. Bhatia, Vikram Thakur other party leaders, including 11 mandal presidents from 11 constituencies of the district, all staunch supporters of former Union Minister Mr Shanta Kumar, Mr Dhuwala said that he was supported by the presidents of 11 constituencies out of 16 in this district. |
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Mystic Bhalkoo’s services recognised Shimla, November 2 There could have been no centenary celebrations of the British engineers’ dream project without the mention of Bhalkoo who came to their rescue every time the project hit a roadblock. His contribution in translating the dream into reality would have gone unnoticed had their been no celebrations to mark the 100 years of the rail track on November 9. The difficult hill terrain forced the engineers to alter the alignment of line time and again and invariably it was this enigmatic character Bhalkoo who put them on the “right” track. There were occasions when the British came close to abandoning the project but for this fascinating and rather mysterious man who claimed that the trace of the rail track had been revealed to him by his “devta” (deity). Despite his shabby looks and unclean habits, the British respected him and the manner in which he pin-pointed the exact sites for boring a tunnel or constructing a bridge with a long staff he always carried with him, they even started believing that he possessed supernatural powers. He had matted hair infested with lice, which he used to feed by pouring flour and sugar over his head. He claimed that his “devta” communicated with him through the lice. The installation of his bust at famous tourist resort of Chail, close to his native village, Jhajja, will be a good gesture, especially as the statue is being put up by the villagers who have formed the “Bhalkoo Smriti and Jan Vikas Samiti” for the purpose. Mr Virbhadra Singh, Chief Minister, will unveil the bust on November 6. The faith and confidence the British engineers had in his capabilities could be judged from the numerous certificates issued to him by them. He was not only associated with the construction of the Kalka -Shimla rail track but was also instrumental in laying out the alignment of the Hindustan-Tibet road while serving in the hills road division. Testifying his talent, Capt A.M. Lang, Executive Engineer, Kotgarh, described Bhalkoo as the most remarkable and fearless cragsman who could cross any precipice in the hills and traverse a difficult ground. Lieut-Col C. Bachelor, Deputy Conservator of Forests, Satluj Division, termed him as the mainstay of the Hindustan-Tibet road. A celibate Bhalkoo had little interest in the materialistic world and he came to be known as Baba Bhalkoo during his lifetime. This is amply clear from the letter Mr David Briggs, Superintending Engineer, Bihar Division, wrote to him in 1870 while leaving for England. Terming him as the most honest, active and true-hearted man he had come across in India, Mr Briggs wrote: “I know you care for few worldly things but there may be one thing which you would like me to send from England”. The mysterious character vanished mysteriously. No one really knows where he disappeared after embarking on a pilgrimage to Jagannath Puri more than 100 years ago. Mr B.R. Mehta, a close relative and president of the Baba Bhalkoo Smriti and Jan Vikas Samiti, says that the British engineers were keen to take him to England but he was reluctant. However, as he was in no position to defy their wish he told them that he could move out of the country only after visiting the abode of Lord Jagannath to which they agreed. He never returned but the British government did not order any inquiry to know his whereabouts. He said there was a possibility that he might have been taken to England against his wishes. Be that as it may, he would be remembered for his role in laying the toughest and most expensive projects of its times, involving the construction of 107 tunnels, numerous lofty arched viaducts, over 800 small and big bridges and continuous succession of as many as 919 in and out reverse curves. The 95.4-km narrow gauge track climbs to 7000 ft at Shimla from 2200 ft at Kalka passing through valleys and spurs, flanking mountains. It became operational on November 9,1903. At present it has 102 tunnels, the rest having caved in over the years. The contract for construction was awarded to the Delhi-Umbala Company in 1898 at estimated cost of Rs 86,78,500, however, the cost doubled during execution of the project and it was finally purchased by the state in 1906 for Rs 1,71,07,748. The 100 years of the track will be celebrated on a large scale and the main events include a heritage walk from Kalka to Shimla, a vintage car rally from Delhi to Shimla, display of mounted cavalry and motor cycle riders of the Army, performance of fusion band of the Army, staging of plays at the historic Gaiety Theatre featuring Anupam Kher and release of postage stamp to mark the centenary of the track. The main stations, including Shimla, Summer Hill, Kaithlighat, Solan, Dharampur, Barog and Kalka, will be illuminated. |
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Army team completes rafting expedition Khodri Majri (Paonta Sahib),
November 2 The expedition members rafted through the Bhagirathi and the Ganges . In the first phase the 50- member team consisting of six officers three JCOs and 41 jawans completed the target. In its first phase starting from Joshiyada bridge on Bhagirathi in Uttarkashi, the expedition went through Dunda, Dharasu, Tehri, Koteshwar Mahadev, Dev Prayag, Kaudiyala and Rishikesh , covering approximately 200 km in eight days. During the second phase on the Yamuna the expedition was launched from Barkot on October 31 and covered a distance of approximately 80 kms via Damta, Yamuna Bridge, Hathras and Dhak Pathar. The team leader Col. Bishamber Dayal said the going from Uttarkanshi to Dev Prayag on Bhagirathi was extremely adventurous as there were a large number of high grade rapids and sudden steep falls. Complementing his team mates for having successfully overcome the treacherous course, the team leader said that the young officers Maj Rajesh Krishan , Lieut. Ankur Tandon, Lieut. Sameer Shara and Lieut. Sumesh Nair will use this experience for more adventurous activities in the future. He also commended his team mate Col. Lalit Pande for being on the course with the team.
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CM gives 25 lakh to Sainik School Sujanpur Tihra, November 2 The Chief Minister announced a grant of Rs 25 lakh for the construction of an auditorium of the school. Major Jamwal and Col R.C. Ladha, Principal, welcomed the Chief Minister and gave complete account of the activities undertaken by the school. Officers of the Indian Air Force and cadets of the school gave a display of skydiving and parasailing. Earlier, the Chief Minister took the salute from cadets of Sainik Schools and inspected the guard of honour. Later on talking to mediapersons, Mr Virbhadra Singh said more facilities as demanded by the school authorities would be provided in a phased manner. |
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Man shoots neighbour Dharamsala, November 2 Ashok Kumar (35) heard some commotion in the neighbourhood and went to investigate. He found that his neighbour Anup Sharma was mercilessly beating his ten-year-old daughter. When Ashok tried to stop his neighbour incensed Anup Sharma came out with his gun and shot Ashok Kumar. Anup fled from there after this. The Shahpur police has registered a case under Section 302 of IPC against Anup Sharma. In another incident at Fatehpur, under Jwali police station, property dispute claimed the life of Kuldip Puri. According to police sources, Kuldip Puri had a property dispute with Nirmala Devi and her family. On October 31 the two families had yet another fight. Kuldip was allegedly hit by Nirmala and her two sons repeatedly and was admitted in serious condition to PHC, Jwali. The doctors there referred him to Dr Rajendra Prasad Government Medical College, Dharamsala for CT scan. But the patient was turned back to Jwali hospital as the same could not be done. His condition deteriorated yesterday and he succumbed to his injuries. The Jwali police has registered a case against Nirmala Devi and her two sons named in the FIR but no arrests had been made till today. |
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Monkeys fight over Babu Ram’s place
Shimla, November 2 However, his death early this week has come as a shock, both for devotees visiting the temple as well as for the priest and management of the shrine, that is dedicated to Lord Hanuman. Anxious visitors could be seen making inquires from the priest about Babu Ram, who had over the last two decades become a fimiliar figure at the Jakhu temple. Babu Ram, as he was fondly called by the temple priest as well as the visitors to the shrine, died following excess bleeding from wounds that he had sustained during a fight with his fellow monkeys. In fact, even age had caught up with Babu Ram. After his demise, Babu Ram was buried as per traditions just close to the Jakhu mandir, that had become his home. He was described as the friendly monkey who would go close to visitors and made no attempt to frighten them. But when it came to his ‘colleagues’, he would not hesitate to attack them so as to ascertain his supremacy. The temple priest, Pandit Ram Lal, who is still in deep mourning following the death of his favourite monkey, recalled that Babu Ram was a regular visitor to the mandir. The priest used to feed Babu Ram. On days the monkey did not show up at the temple, the priest would go into the woods calling for Babu Ram. As Babu Ram did not choose his successor, the male monkeys of Jakhu Mandir area may wage a battle against each other to establish their right to the throne left abandoned by Babu Ram. According to pandit Ram Lal, Babu Ram, too, became the uncrowned king after a waging a succession battle against his fellow male monkeys and this might be repeated again. — UNI
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Need to widen bridges Hamirpur, November 2 At least over a dozen new small culverts and bridges need widening and re-construction. Worst affected are the bridges over Hathli khud near Hamirpur town, Kunah khud near Bhira and culverts on 10 small choes and khuds on the highway. The failure on part of the National Highway agency and the HP Public Works Department to re-construct the bridges on this highway has resulted in accidental deaths of at least 24 persons during last two years. Some drivers said local persons had no problems but those crossing through the area for the first time fell prey to these narrow bridges and culverts. A spokesman of the Public Works Department said that the department had sent proposals to the central government for the construction of new bridges and culverts. But approval was being awaited. |
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A town
plagued by industrial pollution Parwanoo, November 2 The residents add that the local nagar panchayat dumps the
waste of the town in the open in this sector and burns it, resulting
in smoke for days together. Residents of Sector 1 also complain of
fumes emitted by a chemical factory and smoke from a steel plant.
Residents of Sector 1-A say that smell of rubber-burning is prevalent
in the area, especially in the evening, as factory-owners burn their
waste in the open. They say that heavily loaded vehicles moving on
this road also emit a lot of smoke as there is no check on these
vehicles. Doctors of the town say that diseases of the lungs,
bronchitis and allergies are on the rise here. A number of
industrial units do not have pollution-control equipment and are
flouting bylaws of the Pollution Control Board.
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Pay compensation, insurance firm told Shimla, November 2 The complaint had insured his vehicle with the company and the vehicle met with an accident in 2000. He lodged the claim with the company but the company failed to indemnify the complainant on the ground that the vehicle was being driven by an unauthorised person who did not have a valid licence. Dismissing the plea of the company, Mr S.K. Chaudhary, president of the forum, held that the driver had a valid licence. |
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BSNL Net users face problems Solan, November 2 With barely 30 Internet protocols (IP), the Solan SSA is catering to Solan and Sirmaur. There are at least 40 ISDN subscribers, besides a large number of PSTN users. The IPs are insufficient, subscribers say, especially since big industrial units based at Parwanoo, Baddi, Chambhaghat, etc. used Internet facility almost throughout the day. They said, at the time of the declaration of board results, the BSNL had blocked access to other sites which had displayed the results. It was only after lodging a written complaint with CMD, BSNL, Mr Prithipal Singh, at New Delhi that sites could be accessed. The General Manager, SSA, Solan, Mr S.K. Bose, expressed ignorance about the complaints but said he would look into the problems. He said some testing work was going on for carrying out expansion of the exchange and it might have caused the breakdown. He denied that there was excess load on the BSNL Net.
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Staff shortage plagues sanatorium Kumarhatti, November 2 Mr Vishnu Dutt Sharma, Medical Superintendent, says there is a possibility of a decrease in the bed strength of the sanatorium following the setting up of the State TB Demonstration and Training Centre. At present the sanatorium has a 300-bed strength, out of which only 200 beds are occupied. The bed strength could be decreased to half as there was a plan to convert the womens ward into a hostel for the training centre, he said. |
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10-year RI for two Sundernagar, November 2 The two were nabbed by the police at Bindravani Forest check post on March 15. The police seized 2 kg of charas from the rear seat of the car. |
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Nahan, November 2 The district administration has made arrangements regarding the fair. The fair would commence with the arrival of a palanquin carrying the idol of Lord Parshuram from Jamu village to Dadahu, 2 km from Renuka. Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh will be the chief guest at the inaugural function tomorrow. — UNI
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Hamir Utsav gets a musical start Hamirpur, November 2 The Chief Minister also released a souvenir brought out to mark the occasion. He also honoured Ms Pushpa Thakur, an athlete and Mr Bhupinder Thakur, a coach, who belonged to the district, for their contribution in the field of sports. |
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Case registered against two institutes Bilaspur, November 2 SP M. Chandershekhar said here today that Dr D.K. Jain, Assistant Registrar, Jammu University, had in a written complaint to him said that these two institutes were reportedly collecting funds from people though these had not been authorised by the university for this purpose. He said investigations in this matter were underway.
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