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CMs of North zone to meet on July 2
Task force on encroachments in forests set up: minister
Police claims to have solved looting case
Shimla Summer Festival concludes
Lower VAT on food, drinks
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CMs of North zone to meet on July 2
Shimla, June 8 These issues were discussed at a meeting of the standing committee of the council, comprising Chief Secretaries of Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Jammu and Kashmir and the Union Territory of Chandigarh, held here yesterday to finalise the agenda for the meeting. The Chief Secretaries underlined the need to resolve the BBMB issue which has been pending with the Supreme Court for the past eight years. Besides connected issues of Pong Dam oustees, Renuka Dam and the Shanan project will also be taken up at the meeting. The issue of composite tax which hampered free flow of tourists was also discussed and the need to bring party in tax rate was felt. Besides, there was a consensus for developing integrated interstate tourism circuit, which should be funded by the Centre. The issue of the Chandigarh-Baddi road and the Kalka bypass raised by Himachal Pradesh were also included in the agenda for the meeting. Information regarding terrorist activities was also exchanged at the meeting and it was decided that the Directors-General of Police should meet every two months to ensure close coordination in dealing with terrorism. The meeting also focused on areas of common issues connected with the problems of migrant labour, e-governance, devolution of power to Panchayati Raj institutions, recognition of medical colleges and posting of doctors in rural areas and decided to include these in the agenda. Mr S.S. Parmar, Chief Secretary of Himachal Pradesh, who is also Chairman of the standing committee, hoped a that the agenda would resolve interstate issues. The Chief Secretaries of Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, and Himachal Pradesh, Additional Chief Secretary of Rajasthan, Principal Secretary of Jammu and Kashmir and Home Secretary of Chandigarh attended the meeting. |
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Task force on encroachments in
Mandi, June 8 Talking to mediapersons here, Mr Thakur said most of the encroachments on forest land were by outsiders and not by locals. “The trees are being injected either with chemicals or are lopped from the top to dry them up, making room for fruit plantations”, he said. r Thakur said the task force would comprise officials from the Revenue and Forest Departments. “These departments will identify the encroachments and fix responsibility”, he added. On the increasing incidents of forest fires being reported from different parts of the state, Mr Thakur said the state government had made it mandatory that the forest range officer concerned would lodge an FIR in the case of a forest fires. “We need cooperation of the NGOs and Panchayati Raj Institutions to prevent the menace of forest fires”, he added. The minister said most of the forest fires resulted from the fire in the fields, burnt by farmers. “The farmers burn dry leaves, grass and field wastes every year. It has been noticed in many cases that the fire spreads to the surroundings." “To prevent this, the Forest Department and villagers have formed Van Vikas Samitis which have proved effective in preventing the fire incidents,“ he added.
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Police claims to have solved looting case
Solan, June 8 Hyder Ali, the main accused who was impersonating as Babli Mann, was arrested on June 5 from his native place in Fatehgarh Sahib in Punjab, the other two accomplices, Raju and Sonu, were arrested last evening from Kalka and Meerut, respectively. The Superintendent of Police, Mr Gianeshwar Singh, while disclosing this today said Hyder Ali had been working as a servant for the Singlas. The Singlas had to forfeit his surety amount of Rs 2,000 after he was not traceable. A dispute arose between them for his pending pay and Hyder time and again threatened them to pay him his dues. He finally hatched a conspiracy to teach the Singlas a lesson and contacted Raju who worked at Baddi. Raju contacted other youths having criminal antecedents and finally executed the looting incident on May 30. The police has managed to confiscate one of the four mobile phones snatched from the Singlas in the incident. This phone was being used by Sonu at Meerut. Help from the BSNL authorities was also sought to trace the identity number of the four cellphones looted in the incident. This helped to trace the whereabouts of Sonu. Hyder Ali is now in police remand till June 9, while the other two would be produced in a local court late in the evening. |
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Shimla Summer Festival concludes
Shimla, June 8 It was easily the best performance and a fitting finale to the five-day extravaganza. An enthusiastic audience, mostly young boys and girls, danced and clapped as “Sukhu” sang his heart out, crooning one hit number after another. He established instant rapport with the audience and continued interacting with it throughout his performance lasting about four hours. Towards the end of the programme, he picked up boys and girls from the audience and made them dance with him on the stage. As most of his numbers stand out for beat and rhythm, the audience was on their feet soon as he took the stage. “Who kisna hai”, the title song of Hindi film “Kisna”, a personal favourite of the singer, also turned out to be a favourite with the audience. He repeated the song on public demand. “Saki saki re “, “Lagan lagi”, “Kayamat, kayamat”, “Kambakht ishk hai yeh”, and, of course, the all-time hit “Chhainya, chhainya” were among the number which clicked with the audience. He also sang some Punjabi songs. Ravinder Ravi ,who shot into the music scene during the Indian idol competition, also chipped in with Hindi film number “Janam janam ka saath hai”, and Punjabi songs “channa we ghar aaja” and “Bolo tararara trarara”. Upcoming Bollywood singer Madhushri regaled the audience with her hit numbers “Zind mahi ve” , “Kabhi neem neem” and “Pyar ki wo dastaan”. Mr V.S. Kokje, Governor, presided over the concluding function of the festival. |
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Lower VAT on food, drinks
Shimla, June 8 The Excise and Taxation Commissioner said the decision was taken keeping in view the fact that Himachal Pradesh was a tourist destination. He said that the government had also exempted CSD from VAT. All organic and chemical fertilisers had also been exempted from the tax. The rate of tax had been reduced on quilts, bedsheets, pillow covers, paneer and hawai chappals. The rate of tax on arms and ammunition had been reduced to 12.5 per cent. |
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1 killed, 15 injured as bus falls into khud
Shimla, June 8 The bus was on its way from Janan to Shimla. The deceased was identified as Jia Lal Rajta of Nohra village. The driver, Mohi Ram, was among those seriously injured. While 10 of the injured persons were shifted to the Indira Gandhi Medical College and Hospital here, the rest were hospitalised at Theog.
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