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Project engineers resent appointment of retirees
Fire leaves villagers traumatised Move to extend sanctuary area opposed
Rs 2.5 cr spent under Bagwaani Mission
Higher reaches get snow
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Infiltration reports rumours: SP
Commercial use of residential areas on rise
500 students to attend science congress Newly elected AICC members meet today
2 killed as jeep falls into gorge
Now, “Him Idol”
Four held for gambling
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Project engineers resent appointment of retirees
Mandi, November 4 The HPSEB's Project Engineers Association (HPPEA) has resented that its two newly created sister corporations — Pabbar Valley Power Corporation (PVPC) and the HP Jal Vidyut Nigam Ltd (HPJVNL) —are also going the HPSEB's way. The government has extended the tenure of Mr. PK Khurana, a retired Chief Engineer as the Managing Director(MD), HPJVNL, for one more year for the second time, while the PVPC is headed by a retired Chief Engineer, Dr RL Chauhan, who is also a Member, Civil, HPSEB, as the corporation has no full-time MD. The HPPEA has resented the extension, saying that the Rs. 450 crore 110 MW Uhl project, stage III, under Mr. Khurana in Mandi district is running behind schedule and there is no logic in giving him extension. Not only this, the board has made Mr. L D Singla, a retired mechanical Chief Engineer from the Punjab State Electricity Board (PSEB) as an Advisor, (Matters), HP Electricity Regulatory Commission, a month ago. "Mr. Singla enjoys blessing of the Punjab Finance Minister Mr. SS Singla," revealed the sources. The Advisor will cost the fund-starved board Rs. 1 lakh or more a month while the new post will render the existing posts of the Chief Engineer, Systems, and Chief Engineer, Commercial, almost redundant, rued the project engineers. "Mr. Singla is a mechanical engineer yet he will advise board on "non-mechanical matters!". Mr. Shamsher Singh claimed that the retirement age for the chairman is 65 years, while that for its other members it is 62 years. But the HPPEA pleaded that besides Mr Shamsher and Mr. RL Chauhan, Mr. DN Bansal, a Member (Operation), is also a retried Chief Engineer, who have blocked the promotional prospectus for the younger lot within the board. As a result, the HPPEA members pointed out that over 30 to 40 per cent of the board's younger lot have already left the board in frustration and have joined the NTPC, the NHPC and other private firms, which provide them better avenues. Mr. Shamsher Singh said the board has extended the tenure of Mr PK Khurana for a year as its projects are in a "crucial stage" that they would have been affected by appointing somebody else in his place. About Mr. Singla's appointment as an Advisor, Mr. Shamsher claimed that he fulfilled the criteria (mechanical and electrical) for the job. Besides, he is holding the post on a trial basis. Mr. Shamsher said that the board was utilizing the experience of the "retried engineers". "The board has promoted engineers at all levels for the last three years", he added. Mr. Shamsher said that the board has invited applications for the post of the MD, PVPC. "It would appoint a new MD from the board within a period of a month or two", he added. |
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Fire leaves villagers traumatised Shila (Kulu), November 4 There are more than 20 children in this fire-ravaged village who are still in a trauma, as they were taken out when half asleep when the fire ravaged the village. There is no doctor or medicine in the village as the district administration made its presence in the village yesterday along with former Mandi MP Maheshwar Singh and Congress leader Satya Parkash Thakur. “No body asked about the health of the children, rued Ms Yodhya Devi, who along with here family is camping in the nearby house. The children are not anything she complained. The fire has destroyed everything that the poor villagers had. They have no shelter and the temperature is dipping below minus degree celsius as the village lies at over 7500 feet. The fire has destroyed over 360 head of domestic cattle while another 600 animals have no shelter and fodder for the fast-approaching winter months, said Anup Ram, who lost everything he had. There were no officials and home guards to rehabilitate shell-shocked 351 persons. Plight of Chitru Devi, Bali Devi, Shibi Devi, Rupi Devi and Lalmu is worse as they are old and poor women , who have no male member to support them in this hour of crisis. The big question is where would they stay in the winter months when it snows over 4 feet to 6 feet “we cannot build houses. The NHPC is supplying sheets for the makeshift tents. The villagers, including friends and relatives of the victims have camped in the village to assist the victims, who complained of headache and vomiting but they had no medicine. They have yet to come out of the trauma, said Ms Durga Devi, sarpanch of Shila village panchayat. Though the district administration has declared a loss of Rs 2 crore but the villagers now put the loss more than Rs 10 crore. The fire gutted not only houses, but also their savings and valuables of lifetime, she added. The victims have no fuel and firewood to cook food. “We got 6 kg of rice and 6 kg of atta today. But the villagers have to take the supplies on their back for 2 km from the roadhead constructed by the NHPC, which is executing the Parbati project nearby. Three revenue officials and three Home Guards made presence in the village today then they disappeared with monitoring the relief work. The villages said the fire was caused either by the short-circuit or by the kerosene lamp in the house of Mr Kehar Singh in the lower end of the village. “I was asleep but was woken up to see flames all round, said Mr Kehar Singh, who received burns and is admitted to a Kulu hospital. What added fuel to the flames was the strong wind which enraged the fire engulfing the wooden houses, stocked with the dry fire-wood, dry grass and other material in no time. The NHPC companies reached the spot but by that time fire had reduced the cluster of old wooden houses to rubble. The fire tenders could not reach from Kulu and there was no road to the village, rued the villagers. Deputy Commissioner Kulu Chamel Singh, who visited the village yesterday claimed that the team would again go tomorrow and already distributed 60 bags of rice and wheat and given Rs 5,000 per family as immediate relief. “We are assessing the total loss. But over 351 people were rendered homeless. The medical team visited the village yesterday”, he added.
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Move to extend sanctuary area opposed Solan, November 4 In the absence of road connectivity the residents have to walk 7 km to avail themselves of health facilities. The SDM, Arki, has received as many as 48, 203 objections from Sanhali, Chakhar and Chamel villages. Another 137 objections have been received from Barrel panchayat. Dependent on agriculture and animal husbandry to eke out a living, the villagers said the move would create problems for them. While no road would ever be constructed to connect the panchayat once it is notified as a sanctuary, even their bona fide rights in the form of grazing of animals in the forest, collection of wood, water and even the right of way would all be restricted. Elaborating on their problems a section of the villagers said the nearest ayurvedic dispensary was 8 km from Kander while the Public Health Centre was located at a distance of 30 km from Barrel. The appalling state of lack of development can be gauged from the fact that a stretch of the Sutlej has to be crossed to reach the road. Bereft of medical aid, the villagers are apprehensive of losing the possibility of any development activity being undertaken in the area if the sanctuary area was extended. With two cement plants, one existing and another proposed, falling in the vicinity, the move was drawing opposition from investors also. In view of the fact that a crucial National Thermal Power Corporation plant also lies in the vicinity, the extension of the sanctuary was being considered disharmonious. The Deputy Commissioner, Mr Rajesh Kumar, said a public hearing would be held tomorrow to know public objections. He said the sanctuary area was being extended as per a direction of the Ministry of Environment and Forests’ (MOEF). The process had to be completed within three years, he added. It was also learnt that since an area of 21 sq km of sanctuary was denotified to facilitate inception of a cement plant at Darlaghat in 1991, a shortfall in the total sanctuary area had arisen in the state. The MOEF had, therefore, directed the state government to enhance the sanctuary area in the state.
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Rs 2.5 cr spent under Bagwaani Mission
Bilaspur, November 4 Speaking at a function at Anandghat near Jhandutta near here, Mr Singhiram said that this cooking gas agency was third being run by HP Food and Civil Supplies Corporation in Bilaspur Distt. after Ghumarwin and Suharghat this would serve 8171 families. The minister also inaugurated Rs 7.50 lakh cooking gas store and said that government is serving people through 4,193 controlled price shops out of which 130 such shops are being run by state corporation. He also said that there are 13,65,556 ration card holders in Himachal Pradesh Mr Singhiram stated that in Bilaspur District Rs 2.50 crore have been spent on encouraging orchards and fruit plants under “Bagwaani Mission.” Local MLA Dr. Biruram Kishore and Bilaspur Sadar MLA Tilakraj Sharma also addressed the function. |
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Higher reaches get snow
Shimla, November 4 The early snowfall in the hills of Chopal and Haripurdhar and also in the Churdhar ranges created wintry conditions in the lower valley, signalling the onset of early winters. The famous tourist resort of Narkanda, 65 km from here, Hatu Peak, Sarahan and the adjoining higher hills in Shimla district and parts of Kinnaur district also experienced intermittent snowfall during the past 24 hours. The Chandra Khani and Hamta pass in Kullu and Surjtal, Chandratal and the Pin Parvati pass in the Lahaul valley experienced a moderate to heavy snowfall. The minimum temperature dipped to 3.6ºC at Bhuntar (Kullu) and 7.6ºC in Shimla. Pilgrims on the way to Churdhar have been advised to stay at the base camp till the weather cleared and the district administration also sent messages to the base camp asking them not to allow the pilgrims to proceed to the higher reaches.
— PTI |
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Infiltration reports rumours: SP
Chamba, November 4 In a statement here today, he described these news reports as “ill-founded and fabricated”. He also ruled out any possibility of terrorists hiding in the timberline of Chamba border. These were merely “rumours”, he said. He said long-range patrol and the combing operations had been a routine exercise of the security forces on the borders since these forces were deployed in 1998. There was no let-up in the surveillance, the SP added. He said the security forces had been placed at his disposal and these were operating swiftly and with utmost vigilance. As a sequel to this, everything was going on well as far as safety and security of border villages and its inhabitants was concerned. The SP appealed to the public residing on the borderland of Chamba not to feel panicky due to such “false” and “baseless” media reports. He said the services of 159 village defence committees consisting of trained 1,440 members and 476 special police officers spread out over an area of about 265 kms on the borders were being utilised to gather intelligence inputs. The battalions of the Himachal Armed Police (HAP), the India Reserve Battaion (IRB) and the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) were already on their toes to combat any untoward incident as a sequel to the terrorists’ nefarious designs. Out of 34 checkpoints, only nine were being manned by the ITBP, the SP pointed out. |
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Commercial use of residential areas on rise
Parwanoo, November 4 Godowns in the basement have been constructed on land earmarked for residential purposes. These godowns were used to store raw material and other goods. The parking of trucks for loading and unloading of the materials during the odd hours has become a headache. Quite often the workers continue loading and unloading work late at night, pointed out a senior citizen. “We cannot think of sleep peacefully until they complete their work,” he rued. Most of the times roads remain occupied by the trucks carrying goods and raw material. The residents, particularly women prefer not to venture out of their homes after evening as a truck crew and the labour force continue to roam on the roads, said another affected residents. Out of the total six sectors of the town, most fall under the jurisdiction of the MC as far as no objection certificate
(NoC) for any new construction are required. For the area not falling under the MC jurisdiction, the Town and the Country Planning (TCP) Department has to give an NoC for new construction. There is a procedure to seek permission for change in the land status. Both the MC and the TCP department at present have very limited resources to perform duties to check the misuse of land. The MC fee for change in the land status was almost double of what TCP charges for the same purpose. The rise in illegal change in landuse cases was attributed to avoid the fees. |
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500 students to attend science congress Shimla, November 4 The theme will be “Harness water resources for a better future”. Competitions will be organised in various fields including science activity corners, science quiz and scientific survey. About 500 students and teachers from all over the state will participate in it. Astronomer Dr J.J. Rawal, a former Director of Nehru Planetarium and president of the Indian Planetary Society, will train students in watching stars and planets during night through a telescope. Ms Bharathi Prasad, Additional Director, National Institute of Amateur Radio, will organise a ham radio demonstration. Ham radio is not only an interesting hobby but also a valuable communication tool during earthquakes and natural disaster. A show explaining miracles scientifically and low-cost science experiments, passive solar housing technology and greenhouse technology will also be organised.
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Newly elected AICC members meet today Shimla, November 4 The 40 members will meet here under the chairpersonship of Mrs Viplove Thakur, PCC chief, here tomorrow to adopt a one-line resolution authorising Mrs Gandhi to name the CWC members from the state. Mr Virbhadra Singh, Chief Minister, will also be present at the meeting.
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2 killed as jeep falls into gorge
Hamirpur, November 4 One the injured has been identified as Karam Pal Singh, driver of vehicle, while identity of other person was yet to be established. Both the injured have been admitted to a hospital at Hamirpur, the police said. The dead have been identified as Milap Chand (27) and Brij Lal (74), the police said. |
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Now, “Him Idol”
Kangra, November 4 Jatinder Raju, chairman of the Shri Brajeshwari Kala Kendra (BKK), said at a press conference here today that the BKK, in collaboration with Jayanti Mata Musical Company, and Jai Maa Musical Company, would organise “Him Idol” in three phases from November 20 which would conclude in the last week of January next year. |
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Four held for gambling
Nalagarh, November 4 A sum of Rs 7,000 and satta slips were seized from them. The arrested persons were Jaagat Narian, Om Prakash, Pahu Lal and Krishan Lal. Meanwhile the Subahtu police has arrested three persons for allegedly involved in satta. A sum of Rs 400 and satta slips were recovered from them. A case under the Gambling Act has been registered.
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